Iron Kite Hall fell silent for a moment. The attendants all looked at Li Zhaoji in astonishment, and even Li Jichen thought he had misheard: "You're going to do what?"
"Go to the Tang residence to play Tang Jiayu's husband, and trick her into unraveling The Lingyun Chart." Li Zhaoji's expression was indifferent, calm as if he were stating a fact. "Since the goal is to extract the secret, finding someone she likes will make it easier to open her heart, won't it?"
That was indeed the fact. The irritation in Li Zhaoji's heart had finally found an outlet. Tang Jiayu had said to his face that she liked him. Even if he didn't care about this woman, it wasn't for others to scheme against her.
Especially when that man was his cousin—a yes-man who competed with him in everything, overtly and covertly.
Wei Chengjun's expression abruptly turned sour. Constrained by Li Jichen's presence, he forced a smile and said, "Cousin, didn't you despise this woman before?"
"I only despise false affection, not her. Besides…" Li Zhaoji looked at Wei Chengjun, the smile in his eyes thin and faint, hiding a cold blade. "People can change at any time, isn't that right, cousin?"
Wei Chengjun's expression was ugly, but Li Jichen's trusted strategist Duan Ze laughed and said, "If the Young Lord is willing, then nothing could be better. You and Princess Qixing are well matched in appearance, and your statuses are compatible as well. Who knows, it might even be a fine marriage."
Li Zhaoji corrected him with a cold, aloof expression: "It's just a show. It doesn't count as any fine marriage. I'll go, but I have conditions."
"The Young Lord may speak freely."
"First, don't make a big affair of this. Keep the news contained within the Tang residence. It won't take many days anyway—best not to let others know."
"Naturally." Duan Ze said, "The Young Lord's formal wife is a matter for all of Hedong. We certainly won't spread it around and affect the Young Lord's future marriage."
"I don't care either way." Li Zhaoji said, "Even if I've been married before, no one would dare find fault with me. But she's a woman—if word gets out, the world will always be harsher on her. Second condition: a fake marriage, separate rooms. I won't live with her."
Duan Ze was surprised that Li Zhaoji would take the initiative to demand separate rooms. Duan Ze raised an eyebrow and said, "A newlywed couple not living together would be rather strange."
"Since it's acting, then let it be false all the way through. After The Lingyun Chart is unraveled, men marry and women wed, each going their own way." Li Zhaoji's expression was cold and detached as he said mildly, "But we deceived her like this for the sake of The Lingyun Chart. In the end, Hedong has wronged her. When this matter is settled, prepare a generous dowry for her and let her go marry someone she likes."
Duan Ze couldn't help but remind him: "But Young Lord, she likes you."
Li Zhaoji responded with extreme coldness and matter-of-factness: "But I don't like her. She won't be my future wife. Better to let her find someone else."
Duan Ze smiled without a word. The Young Lord was indeed young—valuing loyalty and righteousness, knowing nothing of love, yet placing too much importance on it. With such youthful spirit, no wonder Tang Jiayu had fallen in love with him at first sight.
Duan Ze was all the more pleased with this outcome. It was far more useful than him going to the Tang residence to impersonate Tang Jiayu's teacher. Moreover, as someone who had served as Tang Jiayu's painting teacher for two years and had watched the Young Lord grow up with his own eyes, Duan Ze had a premonition: once the Young Lord went to the Tang residence, he likely wouldn't be able to carry out what he had said today—to be so cold and heartless, with a heart of iron.
Even if feelings develop, it's no concern—Tang Jiayu is the Grand Princess of Da Qi, and that in itself is a political resource, one that can be used to full advantage. When the Military Governor had previously approved Wei Chengjun's approach to Tang Jiayu, Duan Ze had remained vigilant.
Human emotions are the greatest variable of all.
Seeing the three principals—Li Jichen, Wei Chengjun, and Li Zhaoji—all wearing grim expressions, Duan Ze sought to lighten the mood with a smile: "With the Young Lord taking the lead, this subordinate need no longer shamelessly play the tutor. My learning is shallow; if I were to teach further, I'd truly have nothing left to offer. Military Governor, what do you think?"
Li Jichen had been frowning ever since Li Zhaoji began to speak, his expression stern and silent. Noticing Li Jichen's unsettling demeanor, Duan Ze clapped his hands as if suddenly reminded: "I've lost track of time—it's already this late. We agreed to roast lamb today, but I forgot to instruct the kitchen. I wonder if they've started the fire yet?"
Li Zhaoji understood the cue and rose to his feet. "I'll go check."
Wei Chengjun also took his leave. The two walked out of Iron Kite Hall one after the other. In the courtyard, the autumn wind was growing stronger, and tree shadows rustled bleakly. Li Zhaoji and Wei Chengjun parted ways at the gate—they exchanged a glance, but neither offered words of courtesy or reconciliation. Each turned and walked in opposite directions.
The attendants filed out one by one. Only when Iron Kite Hall held just Duan Ze and Li Jichen did Duan Ze ask: "My lord has remained silent—does he not approve of the Young Lord's proposal?"
Li Jichen sighed. "Zhaoji is a man of deep emotion. That is precisely why I feared he might be bewitched by a woman's charms. I had Tang Jiayu moved out of the Governor's Manor back then, establishing the Tang residence to keep her separately outside."
Duan Ze recalled the events of bygone days, and understanding dawned in his eyes.
On the sixth day of the ninth month, in the first year of Guangming, Liu Yingrong gave birth to Li Zhaoji in Yunzhou. On that very same day, news arrived that the emperor had fled south. The very next day, Li Jichen led his cavalry south to come to the emperor's aid, embarking upon the road to fame. Thus Li Jichen held deep affection for Li Zhaoji—this child was not only the sole offspring of him and his beloved wife, but also a witness to his years of life-and-death struggle, his rise to dominance. This child was his auspicious omen.
And when Li Jichen first arrived in Guanzhong, he happened upon Tang Jiayu, who carried with her the imperial secret treasure, The Lingyun Chart. On one hand, Li Jichen coveted The Lingyun Chart; on the other, he remained wary. He could not believe he would be so fortunate—misfortune lurks within blessing, and blessing within misfortune. Omens of fortune and curses always appeared together. This could very well be an ill portent.
Li Jichen sent Tang Jiayu, still an infant, back to Yunzhou for Liu Yingrong to care for. Liu Yingrong had fought alongside him for many years; they understood each other's minds without the need for words. Li Jichen trusted his wife to handle the matter properly, while he continued to lead the Raven Army, devoting himself wholeheartedly to quelling the rebellion in Guanzhong.
Zhang Chao's uprising had swept across the nation. He governed his army with a savagery that was infamous—wherever they went, they burned, killed, and pillaged, using human flesh as military rations. His infamy was well known. The generals under Zhang Chao's command—those who managed to survive and rise through the ranks in such an army—were likewise no saints.
Even with the Raven Army's rigorous training and exceptional combat ability, such enemies were no easy prey. Li Jichen fought for three years in Guanzhong, only crushing Zhang Chao completely in the second year of Guangqi and driving into Chang'an. During those three years he spent fighting on campaign, all affairs in Yunzhou were managed by Liu Yingrong. She had just given birth, and at the same time had to care for two children—it was during this period that illness took root in her body, leaving lasting damage.
Li Jichen was enfeoffed as the Military Governor of Hedong, basking in glory and returning home in triumph. When he went back to Yunzhou to fetch his wife and children, he saw the young Li Zhaoji and Princess Jiayu crawling around playing together. Liu Yingrong had taken excellent care of Princess Jiayu; the girl had completely shed the frail appearance she had at birth, and was pinning Li Zhaoji beneath her, bullying him. Li Zhaoji was a month older than her, yet seemed utterly unable to fight back—he was not even as strong as a girl.
Li Jichen, who had just met the Emperor in Chang'an, felt as if a basin of cold water had been poured over his head. With the Fanzhen Military Governorates carving out their own territories and warlords rising on all sides, the Military Governors of each province were building up their own troops and no longer obeyed Chang'an's orders—they even stopped paying grain taxes. At this rate, Chang'an would only grow weaker and weaker, increasingly powerless to restrain the Fanzhen. The Li imperial clan was not entirely devoid of capable members; there had always been talented individuals who wished to restore the glory of the Great Qi. Some among them had proposed a strategy: marry princesses down to the Fanzhen, using marriage ties and blood relations to win over the powerful military governorates, so that Fanzhen troops could be used by the central government—overcoming the strong with the weak, dividing and transforming them, and solving the scourge of the Fanzhen step by step.
Li Jichen was only twenty-eight that year, a young man reveling in success, his achievements overshadowing his sovereign, and the whole realm took notice of him. While he was in Chang'an, many prominent families had secretly inquired about his marriage prospects, and even the imperial household had considered marrying a princess down to him. Li Jichen declined them all, citing his deep devotion to his wife. Yet when he returned home in high spirits, he saw his only son playing with a princess of the former dynasty—eating and living together, without the slightest reservation. How could this not worry Li Jichen?
Afterward, disregarding Liu Yingrong's objections, Li Jichen took advantage of the move to Bingzhou to forcibly send Princess Jiayu away, and built the Tang residence for her, giving her the surname Tang and completely erasing her connection to the Governor's Manor.
That was the first time Li Jichen quarreled with his wife, and the only time he did not yield to Liu Yingrong. He thought it was a trivial matter—who could have imagined that Liu Yingrong would develop a lingering heartache because of it, brooding over it even on her deathbed?
The disasters of Empress Lü and Empress Wu were cautionary tales from the past; no one wanted the empire they had toiled to build to become a bridal gown for someone else. Duan Ze understood Li Jichen's vigilance, but he felt there was no need to give up eating for fear of choking. Duan Ze advised: "My lord worries that Tang Jiayu will become the next Empress Wu—your subordinate understands. But Tang Jiayu and Empress Wu are utterly incomparable. Tang Jiayu grew up under your lordship's control; every person she met was arranged by you. She is naive and dull, with no grand ambitions. Empress Wu entered the palace as a selected maiden and was ambitious from a young age. Tang Jiayu fell in love with the Young Lord at first sight and is devoted to him alone. Empress Wu maneuvered between two generations of emperors, father and son, skilled in the arts of seduction, with unfathomable schemes. Most importantly, the Young Lord is not Emperor Gaozong—he is resolute in will and peerless in martial skill; he would never be a man misled by feminine charms. Hedong is currently accumulating strength, and Tang Jiayu's identity is indeed an asset. What harm is there in making use of it? Moreover, Tang Jiayu is merely a sheltered young woman with no ability to seize power or participate in governance. Even if in the future she were to turn against Hedong, killing her and keeping the child—leaving the mother dead but the son alive—would not be out of the question."
Duan Ze gauged Li Jichen's expression and delivered his final conclusion: "Your subordinate believes that future matters should be resolved in the future. There is no need to be shackled and miss the current opportunity over things that have not yet happened."
Li Jichen sighed and said, "How has it not yet happened? The future is already decided."
Duan Ze was astonished: "What does my lord mean by that?"
"When I found Tang Jiayu outside Chang'an, besides The Lingyun Chart, there was also an imperial edict in her swaddling clothes." Li Jichen was slightly lost in thought as he revealed a secret he had kept for many years. "Consort Wang's carriage did not scatter in the chaos—Emperor Xizong deliberately sent it out. At that time, he already sensed his days were numbered, so he left behind an imperial edict and a token, ordering The Imperial Guard to escort the pregnant Consort Wang to Youzhou. The edict stated that if Consort Wang gave birth to a boy, Youzhou was to enthrone the young prince as emperor; if she gave birth to a girl, the princess was to marry the Young Lord of Youzhou, Wang Rong, and their child was to be enthroned as emperor, with the princess acting as regent for the young emperor in her capacity as mother. Whoever Tian Youxian enthroned as the new emperor would be considered a usurper, and the Military Governor of Youzhou was ordered to assist the new emperor, restore order, and use the treasure indicated by The Lingyun Chart to seek the restoration of the nation."
Duan Ze's eyes widened—only then did he realize there was such a hidden matter. He thought of how Tang Jiayu had been chasing after Wang Rong recently, and his heart skipped a beat as understanding dawned. "No wonder the lord was so opposed to Tang Jiayu meeting Wang Rong. It turns out the two of them had such a connection. The workings of fate are truly beyond words."
Indeed, when Li Jichen heard that Tang Jiayu had suddenly gone out and happened to run into Wang Rong entering the city, and had fallen in love with him at first sight, actively approaching him without regard for propriety, he nearly suspected that Tang Jiayu had discovered something. He had people observe for a long time and found that he was overthinking it—Tang Jiayu had not seen through the deception. She had simply taken a fancy to Wang Rong.
But this was not necessarily good news either. Li Jichen, who had built his current foundation, was by no means a person who believed in fate. Yet at this moment, he could not help but wonder—could it be that the Li family truly had dragon fortune protecting them, and that there was a heavenly will in the unseen?
"So, your earlier suggestion that Li Zhaoji marry Tang Jiayu, and once she bore a child, he could rightfully enthrone the young heir as emperor—that was blocked by Emperor Xizong from the very beginning." Li Jichen laughed mockingly. "The new emperor he favored was the descendant of Tang Jiayu and the Wang family. If Zhaoji truly fell in love with Tang Jiayu, even if she bore a son, with this edict in existence, what would Zhaoji count as?"
A third party?