Chapter 206
Qi Yanzhou looked at Ye Chutang, whose eyes were brimming with a smile, his gaze full of doting affection.
"The Emperor took the blame for Eunuch De this time and is now despised by the people. The two of them will definitely have a falling out."
Coupled with the swirling rumors, the Qi family would be able to enjoy some peace and quiet for a while.
Ye Chutang looked up at Qi Yanzhou and asked curiously, "A'Zhou, what do you think the Dragon Guards of the capital will choose to do?"
Qi Yanzhou, not being very familiar with the Dragon Guards, shook his head.
"It's hard to say. Not all Dragon Guards are as reasonable as Han Chong."
"That's true. The Zhao family cannot sit securely on the throne, so a change of dynasty is only a matter of time. Do you want to take the throne?"
This was the first time Ye Chutang had asked Qi Yanzhou a question regarding the nation and the empire.
Qi Yanzhou met Ye Chutang's eyes calmly and shook his head.
"No. Being a ruler comes with too many shackles."
The Qi family were good generals who could protect the country's peace.
However, securing the nation and governing it were two entirely different matters. He did not believe he possessed the talent to govern a country.
Therefore, although Qi Yanzhou had been secretly plotting to overthrow the Zhao family's tyranny, his intention was to establish a new monarch, not to take the throne himself.
Hearing Qi Yanzhou's answer, Ye Chutang smiled and said, "Being a subject also comes with shackles, and you are still under the control of others."
"A ruler is constrained by the people of the world and has no freedom."
After Qi Yanzhou finished speaking, he raised his hand to tuck a stray strand of hair behind Ye Chutang's ear.
"A'Tang, if you wish for me to sit on that supreme position, I..."
Before Qi Yanzhou could finish, Ye Chutang hurriedly interrupted and refused.
"Don't. I have no desire to be trapped in the palace and fight over a man with three thousand concubines. If you want to be the Emperor, we will get a divorce."
Hearing the word "divorce," Qi Yanzhou frowned slightly and flicked Ye Chutang's forehead in displeasure.
"There will be no divorce. The promise made before our marriage is valid for this lifetime!"
He had no desire for power; otherwise, the empire would have changed hands long ago.
Ye Chutang kissed Qi Yanzhou's cheek. "Then we will settle down in Tianshan Prefecture and be local lords."
"Alright. Whatever you want, I will satisfy you."
"Do you have a candidate for the new Emperor in mind?"
Hearing this, Qi Yanzhou recalled the words Qin Muyun had said when seeing off the bride at the Ten-Mile Pavilion.
"Within ten years, the Beichen Kingdom will surely perish, and a new Emperor Star has already formed."
Qin Muyun must have already embarked on his journey to find the Emperor Star.
He believed it wouldn't be long before he knew who it was.
Thinking of this, he said, "There is no suitable candidate at the moment. Let's just make preparations first."
Knowing that a wise ruler was hard to find, Ye Chutang nodded.
"When the time is right, the candidate will appear."
With that, she rubbed her stomach.
"With such a big incident happening at the prefectural estate, I wonder if there will be any food for dinner?"
Qi Yanzhou wouldn't dare let the pregnant Ye Chutang go hungry.
"What do you want to eat? I'll have Han Chong's men go buy it."
Thinking that she hadn't had a feast in a long time, Ye Chutang said, "Order a table of good dishes from the best restaurant in Liangzhou City."
She wasn't short of money, so there was no need to wrong herself.
"Alright. You go back to the Elegant Courtyard to rest first."
Just as Qi Yanzhou finished speaking, Han Chong's voice sounded from the entrance of the back garden.
"Young Master Qi, Madam Qi, someone has delivered food and wine for the Qi family. Should I bring it directly to the Elegant Courtyard?"
Ye Chutang guessed it was sent by Song Jingning.
"Send it over."
After saying that, she and Qi Yanzhou returned to the Elegant Courtyard.
The courtyard was dead silent.
Qi Jingyao had been crying for an unknown amount of time. Her eyes were severely swollen, and her front lapel and sleeves were wet.
Seeing the two return, she immediately stood up and asked, "Why didn't my mother come back?"
Although she had known the outcome early on, she still hoped for a turning point.
Qi Yanzhou didn't feel any guilt toward Qi Jingyao and looked at her calmly.
"She's dead. If you want to see her one last time, ask the guards outside the courtyard to take you there."
Qi Jingyao's face turned deathly pale.
"Thank you, Second Brother."
With that, she left the courtyard.
Before long, Han Chong led the staff from the Drunken Fragrance Pavilion into the courtyard.
There were five staff members, each carrying two food boxes, and each box contained two dishes.
Since the Elegant Courtyard didn't have a separate dining room, the staff brought the dishes into the main room.
"This is spicy diced beef, this is braised pork trotters, this is steamed sea bass, this is bird's nest soup..."
There was a mix of meat and vegetables, all looking, smelling, and tasting delicious.
Han Chong said to Qi Yanzhou, "Not only does the Qi family have food, but we guards also have our share. This meal must have cost at least a thousand taels of silver. I wanted to pay the bill, but the restaurant staff refused, saying someone had already paid."
He knew they were benefiting from the Qi family's connections, so he specifically came to inform them.
Qi Yanzhou also guessed that the person who sent the food was Song Jingning.
"Lord Han, please eat with ease."
"Alright. You two rest early after eating. We depart tomorrow at the hour of Mao."
After Han Chong left, Qi Yanzhou called his family to eat.
As for Concubine Gao and Qi Yunan, they could only watch from the side and eat the leftovers later.
Although the steamed sea bass was placed opposite Ye Chutang, she was extremely sensitive to the fishy smell and felt a bit nauseous.
Noticing this, Qi Yanzhou said, "Lord Han likes to eat fish. I'll send it over to him."
With that, he took the fish away.
Old Master Qi quickly called out to Qi Yanzhou, "A'Zhou, take this plate of braised pork trotters over too. With so many dishes, we won't be able to finish them all anyway."
If not for Han Chong's help today, even if the Qi family hadn't been plotted against, it would have been difficult for them to extricate themselves.
Qi Yanzhou responded and then took the pork trotters away as well.
Without the dish that made Ye Chutang nauseous, her appetite opened up, and she ate quite a bit.
After eating, she pulled Qi Yanzhou along for a walk to digest the food.
"A'Zhou, I want to visit my brother's maternal grandfather, the Cui family."
Qi Yanzhou also felt that Ye Chutang should visit the Cui family.
Back then, it was Song Mingyu who saved Song Jingning, but it was the Cui family who kept him alive.
"I'll go tell Han Chong in a bit and accompany you."
Ye Chutang quickly refused, "You are too big of a target. I'll disguise myself and go alone."
She had to go empty the treasuries of the Cao, Chen, and Yuan families, so it was more convenient to go alone.
"Then be careful and come back early."
"By the hour of Hai at the latest."
After Ye Chutang finished speaking, she and Qi Yanzhou went to find Han Chong together.
"Lord Han, I have some private matters to attend to and would like to leave the prefectural estate for an hour or two."
Han Chong naturally had no objections.
He pointed out a secret passage for Ye Chutang to leave.
Before leaving, Ye Chutang tied up her hair and changed into men's clothing.
After leaving the prefectural estate, she didn't go to the Cui family immediately but went to the Cao family instead.
The regional inspector was currently confiscating the Cao family's property.
The men of the Cao family were executed on the spot, and the female family members were sent to be official prostitutes.
Those with fierce temperaments immediately took their own lives.
The cries of those who couldn't bear to die echoed to the heavens.
Seeing that the guards hadn't confiscated much property, Ye Chutang guessed that the Cao family either had a secret room or had hidden their wealth elsewhere.
She used her earth-element ability to sense beneath the Cao family's estate, but found nothing.
Then there was only one possibility left—the wealth was hidden elsewhere.
And this place was definitely the Cao family's hidden property.
The only people who knew about the hidden property, besides the deceased Cao Liang, was his wife.
Based on her clothing, Ye Chutang immediately locked onto a graceful woman around forty years old.
She couldn't go ask now; she could only wait until the guards threw her into prison before taking action.
As for the wealth that had already been found by the guards, she could just go to the prefectural estate to retrieve it later.
The Yuan family wasn't far from the Cao family, so Ye Chutang went to take a look on her way.