Chapter 704 - 697_1
"My lord, this Quan An is best at sweet-talking; his words are untrustworthy. You must not be deceived by his nonsense. The bandits from Longhu Mountain were summoned by him, and for all we know, they may not have left yet. You are aware of the notoriety of the bandits from Longhu Mountain; they are not to be trifled with. Just the fact that they dared to act so boldly this time shows how reckless they are. The government is unable to subdue them. If these bandits learn that you are using Quan An again, who knows what accidents might occur in their fury? My lord, you must think this through!"
The butler was not surprised to see the lord react this way. After so many years at the lord’s side, he knew full well what kind of man he was. The reason he had initially tried to stop Ceng Lu from seeing the lord was precisely because he knew the lord’s propensity to be easily persuaded; Quan An was particularly cunning and persuasive, so it was no wonder the lord was swayed, especially given his preoccupation with the young lady of the Zhao Family.
Ceng Lu was not a bold man. He wouldn’t dare provoke the tough characters from Longhu Mountain. The butler’s warning had solidified the wavering thoughts in Ceng Lu’s mind. While the beauty undoubtedly made his heart itch, his life was ultimately more important. Angering the bandits from Longhu Mountain would certainly not be wise. Hence, it was best to deal with Quan An properly.
Quan An was initially pleased, thinking he had swayed the lord, but then the butler intervened and ruined his plans. All this talk of the Longhu Mountain bandits was just an excuse—they clearly just wanted to prevent him from rising again by crushing him utterly. He could not allow this petty person to ruin his plans; missing this opportunity would truly leave him with dim prospects.
"My lord, don’t listen to those with ill intentions. All this about the bandits from Longhu Mountain is nothing but lies fabricated by them. We are so far from Longhu Mountain here in Xin’an City, and I have handled the matter with such secrecy—how could the people from Longhu Mountain possibly know? Even if someone tipped them off, they couldn’t have arrived so quickly. If you ask me, it’s most likely an inside job, a conspiracy to deceive you by pinning the blame on the bandits. We don’t even know who the real culprits are yet!" Quan An didn’t care if the bandits were actually from Longhu Mountain or not, but at this moment, it was imperative,
"You make some sense," Ceng Lu said, looking skeptical after hearing Quan An’s words.
"My lord, it’s not just making sense—it’s exactly the case. Think about it: if I could use the reputation of the Longhu Mountain bandits to kidnap the Zhao lady, why couldn’t others use the same trick? And the coincidence of the timing? To think the thieves would be that powerful is laughable. Even the bandits from Longhu Mountain couldn’t just come and go through the Government Office with such ease. It’s obviously an inside job meant to create trouble, to make the thief seem formidable. Maybe someone was bribed by that Zhao lady to commit the deed. My lord, you must uncover the true nature of the matter and not be hoodwinked."
Quan An earnestly advised with a sincere expression, as if he truly had Ceng Lu’s best interests at heart. When mentioning the bribed insider, Quan An deliberately lingered his gaze on the butler, implying suspicion. This made the butler quite uncomfortable to watch.
Ceng Lu wasn’t particularly astute, but he understood Quan An’s implication. However, he still trusted the butler, who had served him for many years with apparent loyalty. Even if the butler was sometimes underhanded, Ceng Lu believed that he would do nothing to betray him.