Chapter 522: The Lu Clan of Fan Yang's Scheme

On the same night.

The cold wind swept over the eaves of the Lu mansion, stirring the copper bells on the eaves to emit a fine, muffled clatter.

Inside the study.

A solitary lamp, bean‑sized, cast a dim yellow halo that barely pushed back the darkness, rendering the hanging paintings on the wall in vague shadows.

Lu Huichun, dressed in a plain Brothel, stood by the window with his hands clasped behind him.

His face was lean and gaunt, a few strands of silver hair at his temples standing out sharply in the lamplight.

His gaze passed through the lattice, looking out at the heavy night, the darkness seeming to conceal an endless vortex, causing his brows to knit and his face to grow solemn.

"Who actually fomented today's riot?" Lu Huichun muttered, his voice low and hoarse, tinged with unmistakable confusion and worry. "Jiankang, Luoyang, or perhaps Chang'an…"

The world was divided among three powers, while hidden currents surged among the factions.

Jinyang, as a major stronghold and auxiliary capital of Great Qi, experiencing a riot of this scale was certainly no accident.

He always felt that behind this chaos lay a struggle among forces far more complex than what appeared on the surface…

But which side struck first, and what their intent was, remained impossible to discern at the moment.

Just then, a "Bang"—the wooden door of the study was violently flung open, breaking Lu Huichun's train of thought.

Turning his head, he saw his younger brother Lu Zhaoqun in a blue robe, hair disheveled, face full of panic, stumbling wildly into the study.

"Second brother, something terrible has happened!" Lu Zhaoqun shouted, sprinting with breath already ragged, panting heavily as he drew near.

His chest heaved violently, his voice trembling, clearly at the brink of desperation.

Lu Huichun's brows lifted slightly, his heart thudding, and he hurriedly asked, "What is it?"

"Could it be that the city's riot hasn't been quelled?"

Leaning on the desk, Lu Zhaoqun gasped for air, waved his hand, and after finally calming his breathing, hurriedly replied, "The riot is over!"

"Then why are you in such a rush, with such a serious expression?" Lu Huichun grew more puzzled; the quelling of the riot was good news, yet his brother looked as if the heavens were collapsing.

Lu Zhaoqun inhaled deeply, then thrust his head up; the panic on his face turned to extreme solemnity. Covering his still‑heaving chest, he declared loudly, "But Ku Di Gan, Lou Xu and other honored officers, with a massive force of troops and horses, have gone to the residences of Wang Shizhong and Guo Zuo Pushi!"

"They claim that Wang Cheng Ji, Wang Shizhong, and Guo Now we need to output lines: English, Guo Zuo Pushi colluded, forged counterfeit money, and incited the riot; they are the masterminds behind all this!"

"Moreover, the two have already taken their own lives out of fear of guilt, and their families have been seized!"

"What?!"

Lu Huichun's startled shout suddenly ripped through the study's dead silence, his voice so sharp it nearly cracked.

He spun around abruptly, his face contorted by extreme shock, eyes wide open, fixed on Lu Zhaoqun, pupils filled with incredulous horror.

Then, staggering two steps forward, he seized Lu Zhaoqun's arm, his voice trembling uncontrollably, "Zhaoqun, is the information truly accurate?"

Lu Zhaoqun looked at his elder brother's disarray, fear also in his heart, yet he nodded vigorously, his tone decisive, "Second brother, absolutely certain!"

"I personally saw, two mansions were ransacked, and people were shackled and taken away!"

"As for the news of Wang Shizhong and Guo Zuo Pushi's deaths, Ku Di Gan's own troops announced it publicly, even saying they would hang the two bodies in the streets as a warning!"

"Framed! This is clearly a frame!" Lu Huichun abruptly released his brother's arm, staggered back, waving his hands in the air, his emotions completely out of control, "Wang Cheng Ji is upright and incorruptible, Guo Now we need to output lines: English is cautious and prudent; how could they collude to rebel?"

"This is a naked injustice!"

This is a premeditated Great Purge.

It is the honored officers using the riot as a pretext to eliminate dissent!

"Second brother!" Lu Zhaoqun, seeing this, hurried forward a step, lowered his voice and warned gravely, urgency in his tone, "Now is not the time to discuss this!"

Then, leaning close to Lu Huichun, he lowered his voice even further, "Wang Shizhong and Guo Zuo Pushi have always been close to you, sharing the same political views. Now that they are in trouble, how could Ku Di Gan and his men let you go unscathed?"

"What we must consider now is our own situation!"

"How to protect ourselves!"

Lu Huichun leaned on the desk and sat down slowly, his fingertips so cold they could barely grasp the pen shaft on the desk.

The earlier fury and loss of composure gradually faded, replaced by a coldness that seeped to the marrow.

Yet beneath that calm roiled a surge of terrifying waves.

He felt a chill down his spine, a coldness climbing each vertebra, causing him to shiver, his voice hoarse as if surviving a disaster, "You are right…"

"I have long harbored grudges against those honored officials!"

He recalled his days in the court, as a Deputy Censor, repeatedly impeaching military nobles who abused their achievements to oppress the people.

He and Ku Di Gan, Lou Xu and others had long been like water and fire.

Now that Wang Cheng Ji and Guo Now we need to output lines: English, his "eyes‑of‑a‑nail," have been removed, those people choosing to rebel will not easily cease…

Lu Huichun furrowed his brows into a knot, his gaze as heavy as iron, "We cannot guarantee they won't pin the blame on me, expanding the blow and eradicating any future trouble!"

With those words, the air in the study grew even more stagnant.

Lu Zhaoqun, seeing Lu Huichun's solemn expression, felt his own anxiety intensify, stepped forward, urging urgently, "Second brother, you are the head of our Fan Yang Lu clan; the safety of the entire family rests on you, you must decide quickly!"

He clenched his fist, his voice full of urgency, "The situation is dire; each moment delayed adds risk. We must prepare early and cannot sit and wait for death!"

The death of the contemporary Xiang Yu of the Gao clan of Bohai is still vivid in memory…

Lu Huichun fell silent, his fingertips tracing the grain of the desk, his gaze fixed on the heavy night outside the window.

After a long while, he spoke slowly, his voice low yet unusually firm, "Qi State… may no longer be able to stay."

"We must find another way!"

"Find another way?" Lu Zhaoqun's eyes flashed with a glimmer, then fell back into hesitation, "But the world is divided into three; beyond Qi State, only two families remain…"

"Second brother, do we choose Zhou or Liang?"

Going north is close, yet it was the first option Lu Zhaoqun ruled out.

A proud Fan Yang Lu clan aligning with the Rouran barbarians—wouldn't that be a source of ridicule if spread?

The lamp in the study flickered, reflecting Lu Huichun's tightly knit brows.

After a long contemplation, his gaze withdrew from the night outside and settled on his brother's anxious face; finally, in a deep voice, he said with resolute certainty, "I, as the elder brother, think we must go west!"

"Why?" Lu Zhaoqun was startled by the words, his face full of confusion, and hurriedly asked, "In terms of national strength and territory alone, Liang far surpasses Zhou!"

"Moreover, Jiangnan's literary atmosphere is flourishing, with clan scholars gathering; our Fan Yang Lu clan has always passed down Confucianism, so going there we could quickly establish ourselves. How could we choose Zhou?"

He truly could not understand why his second brother would abandon the seemingly superior Liang and choose Zhou, which is at odds with Qi State.

One must know that Southern Liang, in terms of region, literary climate, and connections, fits the Lu family's situation even better.

Lu Huichun raised his hand, raised two fingers, his gaze sharp and firm: "Only for two reasons!"

He paused, speaking each word deliberately: "First, you only know Southern Liang's vast surface territory, but you do not know Zhou's potential..."

"Since the Yubi incident, Zhou and Qi have not engaged in direct war for many years, but after the uncle‑nephew pair Yuwen Xin and Yuwen Hu successively took power, Zhou has been biding its time, reforming internal affairs, implementing equal‑field land distribution, encouraging agriculture and sericulture, training troops, and its national strength is no longer as weak as before!"

"The string of great victories in the past two years is proof!"

"In contrast, the south appears stable but is internally rotten beyond repair; the emperor is superstitious about Buddhism, the Imperial Clan fights constantly, the common people are displaced, and the national strength has been waning day by day!"

Lu Zhaoqun thought carefully, fully agreeing, and nodded repeatedly: "Second brother is right!"

The most recent battle in the west even struck the northwestern hegemon Tuyugun, forcing it to sign a treaty beneath the city, become a vassal, cede land and pay tribute...

Lu Huichun exhaled a puff of foul breath and continued: "Second, your sister‑in‑law's elder sister is the mother‑in‑law of the Zhou aristocrat Chen Yan!"

"Chen Yan holds the office of Zhuguo General in Zhou, has opened a prefecture with authority equal to the Three Departments, and is deeply trusted by Grand Preceptor Yuwen Hu, wielding immense power!" A glint flashed in Lu Huichun's eyes, "With this marital tie, after we pledge to Zhou we will not be rootless driftweed."

"Chen Yan, seeing us as relatives, will surely recommend us to navigate Zhou; then we will not only settle securely but also have a future of wealth without worry!"

"Although Jiangnan has many clan gatherings, most are tangled old powers; if we go there rashly, it is merely adding flowers to an already fine brocade, and we may not be given important positions."

"And Chang'an is currently in need of talent; with Chen Yan's connection, we can certainly display our abilities—this is the wise course!"

Lu Zhaoqun, hearing this, raised his hand and slapped his own forehead hard, his face full of sudden realization, and laughed ruefully: "Look at my memory! I actually forgot this crucial link!"

Lu Huichun's expression grew solemn, and he waved his hand: "We must begin preparations!"

He paused, then shifted tone, his eyes sharpening, "We cannot go empty‑handed; before heading west we must prepare a Letter of Allegiance!"

Having said that, he stepped forward, grabbed his younger brother, brought his mouth to his ear, and whispered a few instructions in a low voice.

The voice was extremely soft, audible only to the two brothers.

Lu Zhaoqun listened intently, his brows furrowing then relaxing; after his second brother finished, he nodded repeatedly, his eyes full of understanding and resolve: "Second brother, rest assured, I understand what to do!"

"Good!" Lu Huichun patted his shoulder, his tone urgent yet steady, "Time is pressing; Zhaoqun, you go handle it quickly!"

"I'll go right away!" Lu Zhaoqun replied, turning, but as he reached the Shufang doorway he abruptly stopped, turned back anxiously and asked, "And you, second brother?"

Lu Huichun lightly flicked his sleeve, walked to the window, gazed at the faint lights toward the palace, his eyes complex yet resolute: "I, the elder brother, will enter the palace at once!"

"Seek Your Majesty's protection!"

"First, let today pass peacefully..."

And that night, the anxiety in people's hearts extended far beyond the Fan Yang Lu clan...