Lu Qingwan’s hairpin knife pressed against his carotid artery, “I agreed to your terms not because I fear you, so don’t push your luck. Can I take the person now?”
Feng Qingheng, kicked in a vital spot, turned pale and tried to cover himself, but felt too embarrassed. Gritting his teeth, he cursed, “Lu Qingwan, you’re courting death!”
“You can take him, then I understand.” Lu Qingwan, feigning comprehension, asked, “Duan Yue, have you found the person?”
Under Feng Qingheng’s terrified gaze, a dark figure appeared as if from a ghost, “My lady, Administrator Chi has been found.”
“Then let’s go.” Lu Qingwan’s wicked eyes fixed on Chang An, “Won’t you, eunuch Chang, send us off?”
As she spoke, she unceremoniously dislocated Feng Qingheng’s jaw to prevent him from calling for help, and tore down a curtain to tie him up securely. At least, until Chang An returned from seeing them off, Feng Qingheng would be incapacitated.
Chang An had been hiding far away the moment Lu Qingwan kicked Feng Xiwu. Hearing her, he pleaded with a bitter face, “Regent’s Consort, spare this old servant. My life is but a humble one…”
“Less nonsense.” Lu Qingwan shoved Feng Qingheng onto the table, “If you want to live, listen to me. One more word, and I’ll kill you now.”
Chang An then trembled and nodded, “Yes, yes, this old servant will obey the Consort’s every word.”
About fifteen minutes later, Lu Qingwan and Administrator Chi Yao’s father left the palace under Chang An’s escort, their passage unimpeded. Only when Chi Yao’s father boarded the Regent’s carriage did Lu Qingwan dismiss Chang An.
The carriage sped towards the Chi residence. Chi Yun Shen’s hands hovered in the air, his face pale as he said, “Why is it the Consort who is here to escort me out of the palace? Has something happened at my home?”
“Administrator Chi, rest assured, nothing has happened at home.” Lu Qingwan calmly reassured him, her gaze then falling on his somewhat peculiar hands, “Did the Emperor torture you?”
Chi Yun Shen lowered his head and gave a bitter smile, “I prided myself on my family’s upright conduct and my fearlessness of tigers and wolves. Only when truly imprisoned did I realize how useless a scholar can be. Was it my mother who sought out the Consort to save me?”
Lu Qingwan took out her medicine box, “To make a scholar wish to abandon his brush for the sword is the failure of a ruler. Why should you, sir, belittle yourself? Let me examine your hands first. They are priceless, and I cannot afford to ruin them. Allow me to see them, and I guarantee they will be restored to their former glory, allowing you to continue to be a master painter, and not delay your artistry.”
Chi Yun Shen was cooperative, but seeing Lu Qingwan evade his question, he knew his guess was correct. “My mother’s love for her son has caused the Consort trouble.”
Chi Yun Shen sighed, “The new Emperor’s demands are utterly shameless. My father would rather break his own palm than be controlled by him. Now, it seems I have implicated the Consort as well.”
Lu Qingwan was somewhat surprised by his words, “Administrator Chi knows what the new Emperor threatened Grand Scholar Chi with?”
The Chi family had two scholars, father and son serving in the same court. For ease of identification, officials referred to Chi Yao’s grandfather as Grand Scholar Chi, and Chi Yun Shen as Administrator Chi.
Chi Yun Shen lowered his head in shame, “He wanted my father to forge the late Emperor’s handwriting, and under the pretense of the ‘Taiyin’ protecting the empire, have you enter the palace as a consort. But the late Emperor treated the Regent as his own son, how could he allow the Regent such humiliation? Moreover, you are his aunt, which is also against propriety. My father refused. Who knew, seeing my father’s steadfast refusal, he used this as an excuse to imprisonally subordinate. He would occasionally leak information to my father and mother, thereby threatening them to indirectly pressure you…”
As he spoke, Chi Yun Shen raised his hand to beat his leg. Lu Qingwan, startled, quickly stopped him, “Administrator Chi, do not get agitated. He wants to forcibly take me as his consort, and I am not this upset. Even if my medical skills are extraordinary, I cannot withstand your thrashing! It will delay my treatment of you!”
Chi Yun Shen awkwardly held up his hands and repeatedly apologized, “Consort, please forgive my失态 (loss of composure).”
Lu Qingwan calmly shook her head, “Administrator Chi, there is no need to be so agitated. Please also tell Grand Scholar Chi back home not to worry about this matter anymore.”
Chi Yun Shen instinctively nodded, then felt something was amiss. “The new Emperor is stubborn and greedy. Whether to humiliate the Regent or to gain control of the Black Armored Army, he will not easily abandon the idea of forcibly taking you as his consort. My father repeatedly refused him, both out of personal friendship with the Prince and Consort, and for the greater good. He is unlikely to compromise easily, unless, the Consort already has some countermeasure.”
Chi Yun Shen bore a strong resemblance to Chi Jingchuan. His brows did not suggest a scholar, but rather a capable general. His words, though polite, were sharp as he probed Lu Qingwan.
Lu Qingwan secured his ten fingers, bandaging them as she spoke, “There is no countermeasure. I agreed to his demands and will enter the palace as a consort.”
“How can that be?” Chi Yun Shen cried out in shock, his fingers being pulled as he was drenched in cold sweat from the pain. “Consort, the new Emperor’s foundation is unstable. You need not take his threats to heart. At worst, there is still me, my father, and Minister Wen, and other officials. We will never allow you to be humiliated. Why would you debase yourself so?”
A woman marrying two husbands—this was a direct assault on the literary men of this era. Chi Yun Shen’s agitation was palpable, yet Lu Qingwan remained calm. “He is indeed not firmly established, but he can render you like this with a single sentence. This time it is you, but next time, and the time after? The Black Armored Army has four hundred thousand soldiers, and the capital has hundreds, even thousands of people who have helped me before. Who can guarantee that every time we will escape without incident?”
Lu Qingwan’s words were like a splash of cold water, chilling Chi Yun Shen to the bone. His impassioned expression instantly turned hollow and stiff.
Li Jin’s voice came from outside, “Consort, we have arrived at the Chi residence.”
Lu Qingwan withdrew her hand, “Feng Qingheng was targeting me to begin with, and the Chi family has been implicated because of me. I will retrieve the suffering you endured today, Administrator Chi. Please return and tell Grand Scholar Chi that regardless of the turmoil in the court or the harem, he should protect himself. The late Emperor and the Regent cared about Da Gan, not the honor or disgrace of any single person. If the Chi family upholds their integrity, they need not fear anyone.”
Chi Yun Shen intended to say something, but Lu Qingwan’s words made him realize his helplessness in this predicament. Thus, he finally bowed to Lu Qingwan and silently disembarked.
“The injuries to your hands and bones are not light. Please have Administrator Chi come to Ji Ci Hospital daily, oh, that is, the former Bai Xing Lin, to have your dressing changed.”
“This subordinate understands.” Chi Yun Shen seemed greatly struck, his voice even sounding distant.
Lu Qingwan nodded and said no more, “Let’s go, back to the manor.”
Her mind preoccupied with Feng Qingheng’s words, Lu Qingwan did not dare to delay for a moment on the way. As soon as she entered the manor gates, she called out to Li Jin. “Immediately take the young prince to the pharmacy. Go yourself, and do not let anyone else handle the young prince.”