Feng Xi Wu deliberately dangled the bait, stopping his words mid-sentence.
It was only after Lu Qing Wan pinched his palm, a warning, that he continued his narration.
"The King of Qing Zhou's father and brother indeed have ordinary talents, but his nephew is capable.
He has now become the Emperor of Bei Qi's most favored confidant, holding thirty thousand troops and controlling all of Bei Qi's warhorse resources.
Tell me, is this enough for the King of Qing Zhou to make the decision to fight against Emperor Geng Shi?"
Feng Xi Wu's tone was neither schadenfreude towards Emperor Geng Shi, nor an expression of admiration for the King of Qing Zhou's luck.
Regardless, Lu Qing Wan gleaned one meaning from his tone: the King of Qing Zhou would indeed rebel.
When Feng Xi Wu was far away in Da Gan, Emperor Geng Shi had already coveted his head.
With someone of such formidable strength coveting his throne, Lu Qing Wan was naturally pleased to see it happen.
She happily tugged at Feng Xi Wu's sleeve, "The King of Qing Zhou is rebelling, what are your plans?
Are you going to fan the flames, add fuel to the fire, or prepare to sit back and watch the tigers fight?"
Encountering such a major event so soon after arriving in Da Qin, Lu Qing Wan was quite excited, as if she herself were about to rebel.
Feng Xi Wu helplessly placed a hand on his forehead, "Emperor Geng Shi is unlucky, and naturally I will fan the flames and add to the momentum, but why are you so agitated?"
"I can't participate in it, but can't I at least enjoy the spectacle?"
Lu Qing Wan actively engaged in gossip, "By the way, you mentioned before that the King of Qing Zhou repeatedly requested to return to Zhong Zhou for reassignment, but Emperor Geng Shi refused.
If that's the case, then Emperor Geng Shi, if not entirely aware of the King of Qing Zhou's rebellion, must have at least some inkling in his heart, right?
If the King of Qing Zhou were to enter Zhong Zhou without authorization, wouldn't that be like willingly offering his head to Emperor Geng Shi?
Isn't he afraid that Emperor Geng Shi would turn the tables and simply chop him off?"
Lu Qing Wan felt that these ancient people were so stubborn; she simply couldn't understand the King of Qing Zhou's thought process.
Feng Xi Wu, also an ancient person, could readily understand the King of Qing Zhou's intentions.
"After all, the King of Qing Zhou is a regional prince. Killing him is not that easy, is it?"
He rolled his eyes with disdain, "Besides, if Emperor Geng Shi were truly so decisive, my elder brother would have lost his life long ago.
And after twenty-three years on the throne, would he still be using such underhanded tactics to contend for the position of crown prince with my elder brother?"
Lu Qing Wan: ...
What you said makes so much sense that I am utterly speechless.
The two of them exchanged barbs all the way back to the royal manor, before the air grew too thick with tension.
As soon as they entered, Li Jin came out to greet them, his expression quite helpless. "Your Highness, Your Highness Consort, someone from the palace has come, questioning why you two have not entered the palace to express your gratitude.
They also left a message, instructing you both to enter the palace tomorrow morning without fail, under any circumstances."
Logically speaking, Lu Qing Wan had married into Da Qin as part of a peace treaty, and Feng Xi Wu's marriage to her had been approved by Emperor Geng Shi. It was not unreasonable to enter the palace to express gratitude.
However, Emperor Geng Shi's enmity with his brothers was too deep, and Feng Xi Wu could not rest assured with Lu Qing Wan entering the palace.
Upon hearing Li Jin's words, his expression immediately changed.
Seeing this, Lu Qing Wan casually asked him, "Approximately when can the King of Qing Zhou reach Zhong Zhou?"
"About six or seven days' journey."
After Feng Xi Wu finished speaking and was still calculating, Lu Qing Wan quickly interjected, "Then it's fine, we'll enter the palace tomorrow.
Let the Lan family help us delay, and by the time the King of Qing Zhou arrives in Zhong Zhou, Emperor Geng Shi will be too preoccupied to bother with us."
Li Jin, who had a troubled expression, suddenly brightened upon hearing this, "That's right, Your Highness. Emperor Geng Shi probably doesn't know that Empress Lan and Consort Li's families have allied behind his back, does he?
If he gets wind of this news, will he still have the mood to trouble you and His Highness the Crown Prince?"
The grand drama they had witnessed in Buye Continent last night was far from over!
The secret meeting between the young master of the Lan family and the second son of the Fan family would undoubtedly be explosive news to Emperor Geng Shi.
Feng Xi Wu couldn't help but chuckle at the thought, "Let alone Emperor Geng Shi, I'm afraid even Empress Lan and Si Feng Chi wouldn't have expected that Lan An's many schemes were never intended to support Si Feng Chi as the crown prince and new emperor, but rather for himself to ascend the throne."
Lu Qing Wan squeezed Feng Xi Wu's fingers and laughed with extreme arrogance, making no attempt to hide her schadenfreude.
"The Grand Commandant controls the military, and the Prime Minister controls the finances. With these two families allied, Emperor Geng Shi will be left with nothing but a symbolic title.
However, I always feel that this alliance between these two families is unreliable. The Lan and Fan families have been feuding for decades, can they truly ally just like that?"
Great aristocratic families prioritize their own interests.
The Lan and Fan families have been in open and secret strife for over twenty years, and the damage to each other's interests is already irreversible. For such two families to suddenly form an alliance, Lu Qing Wan found it hard to believe.
However, this time Feng Xi Wu's thoughts did not align with hers.
"Under normal circumstances, after fighting for so many years, it would indeed be impossible for the Lan and Fan families to lay down their arms.
But you probably don't know that the ancestors of the Lan and Fan families were actually old friends for a hundred years. Even Empress Lan and Consort Li were close childhood friends.
Emperor Geng Shi, in order to balance the court, married noble daughters from two major aristocratic families, one of literary and one of military prowess, into the palace.
He used various methods, such as establishing the Lan family's daughter as empress but then neglecting her, favoring Consort Li, and appointing Fan family members, to sow discord between the two families."
Lu Qing Wan marveled, "And the result?
The Lan and Fan families have now formed this opposing situation. Has Emperor Geng Shi achieved his goal?"
Feng Xi Wu remained noncommittal.
"Over the years, the Lan and Fan families have indeed become antagonistic as he wished.
But let's consider this from another perspective: if Lan An and Fan Jiang knew from the beginning about Emperor Geng Shi's machinations, and their discord was merely a charade performed before Emperor Geng Shi.
Then, can you still distinguish who is the hunter and who is the prey between Emperor Geng Shi, the Lan family, and the Fan family?"
Lu Qing Wan had to admit that Da Qin was indeed Da Qin; even the court situation was far more complex than in Da Gan.
If Feng Qing Heng had not had Emperor Jing You's protection, he would have been dead eight hundred times over.
This Emperor Geng Shi, who managed to plot against the Lan and Fan families, two major aristocratic clans, and make them perform in a play with him for over twenty years, was truly remarkable.
"From the conversation between Lan Hua Xiao and Fan He yesterday, it's not the entire Fan family, but at least Fan He, the second son of the Fan family, has fallen under Lan An's command.
To make Emperor Geng Shi completely ignore us, one Fan He is probably not enough. Can we find a way to drag the entire Fan family into this?"
Feng Xi Wu pondered for a moment. "In that case, we'll need to bring out His Majesty's youngest favored consort, Madam Ming Ji."
Lu Qing Wan's first reaction was, "Ming Ji?
I don't seem to recall seeing this name in the aristocratic family genealogies. Who is this person?"
"Emperor Geng Shi's youngest favored concubine, and a gift from Empress Lan to Emperor Geng Shi to prevent Consort Li from being solely favored."
Lu Qing Wan nodded in understanding. "But what does this have to do with the alliance between the Fan and Lan families?"