Chapter 235

Li Honghan and Ho Ge found Hu Xiaotian's words novel and interesting; indeed, everyone harbors the ambition to ascend to the Nine‑Five supremacy, and both of them are men of grand vision—Hu Xiaotian's remarks hit the spot. Not bad; as long as the common people live well, who becomes emperor is of no consequence.

Li Honghan raised his wine cup and said, "Good, let's drink a cup to that."

Hu Xiaotian took another sip; he clearly understood his current position—if his father lost power in Dakang, he would become a dispensable figure. Perhaps Li Honghan hasn't killed him yet because he wants to use him as a hostage to restrain his father far away in the capital, or perhaps the Li family still retains a shred of moral conscience, merely putting on a show for outsiders. He is not like Ho Ge, who, as a prince of Shajia, has a kingdom behind him; Hu Xiaotian has nothing. Tonight's events show that the Li family of Xichuan and Shajia have already formed an alliance, thus eliminating the danger of being attacked from both front and rear.

Ho Ge said, "On my way from Shajia to Xichuan I have suffered several assassination attempts; if it weren't for Elder Brother Li sending men to protect me along the route, I doubt I could have reached here safely. Elder Brother Li, I toast you." Hu Xiaotian found it odd—wasn't the Wuxian Sect supposed to ambush the envoy mid‑journey? The Shajia envoy, Momalili, had personally said the Wuxian Sect had killed seven of their members. Considering the several attacks along the way where the Shajia delegation emerged unscathed, Hu Xiaotian suddenly realized: the Wuxian Sect is nine out of ten colluding with the Shajia envoy; perhaps they are the very men the Li family sent expressly to guard the Shajia envoy. Suddenly he recalled Xi Yan's words to him: "Hu Xiaotian, I advise you to be more careful. Don't end up being sold out and still have to count the money for the buyer."

In fact, Xi Yan had already dropped hints, both intentionally and unintentionally, but Hu Xiaotian had never taken them to heart. At the time he simply judged Xi Yan to be ill‑intentioned, never imagining how far the situation's complexity would exceed his expectations. Xi Yan also said that the one truly wanting to kill Prince Zhou was Qin Yutong. Judging by the present circumstances, that seems unlikely, yet Qin Yutong comes from the Xuantian Guan; she accompanied Hu Xiaotian all the way in escorting Prince Zhou Long Yefang to Xiezhou, so she must have some hidden purpose. As soon as she reached Xiezhou she hurried away—could she have already received news from the capital? Ho Ge and Li Honghan chatted happily, while the usually talkative Hu Xiaotian grew unusually silent. Li Honghan noticed his low spirits and said with concern, "Xiaotian, you seem a little unhappy."

Hu Xiaotian replied, "I'm not unhappy; I'm just thinking about the huge upheaval in the capital and wondering how my father is faring now."

Li Honghan said, "Uncle Hu is far‑sighted and accustomed to storms; this incident should not affect him."

Hu Xiaotian silently sighed, "A change of dynasty would not harm my father, but now it is your Li family that is rebelling. I fear being dragged down by you."

Li Honghan then whispered, "Actually, I already sent people to the capital to give advance warning; Uncle Hu has long been prepared."…

Hu Xiaotian nodded and said, "Thank you, Elder Brother Li, for thinking so thoroughly." A few days ago, when Hu Tianxiong came to Qingyun to visit him, he still knew nothing of this; otherwise he would surely have leaked the news. Hu Xiaotian almost could conclude that Li Honghan's words were certainly a lie—splitting territory to proclaim oneself king is no trivial matter; even if the Li family were related by marriage to the Hu family, they would not dare give advance notice, for people's hearts are hidden, especially in political matters. The original purpose of the marriage between Hu Buwei and Li Tianheng was mutual benefit. Now that Li Tianheng has decided to establish himself as a ruler, Hu Buwei may not continue to stand on the same side as him.

Although only a day had passed, Hu Buwei's temples had already turned gray. He sat silently in the bedroom, while his wife Xu Fengyi sat on the bed with red‑rimmed eyes. Both stared silently at the candle flame, neither uttering a word.

Finally Hu Buwei broke the silence, sighing, "Fengyi, if you feel sorrow in your heart, just let out a cry; perhaps it will make you feel a bit better."

Xu Fengyi shook her head: "What good would crying do now?"

Hu Buwei pressed his lips together; crying would not solve the problem. The sudden upheaval in the court had come all too abruptly—though he had sensed something, he was ultimately powerless.

Xu Fengyi gritted her teeth and said, "If it weren't for your lust for power, how could you have become involved with the Li family? Our perfectly fine son had to be betrothed to the Li family's crippled daughter; the engagement itself was bad enough, but you actually sent our son to Xichuan while I was away in Jinling—Hu Buwei, Hu Buwei, you who were once so clever have become so muddle‑headed in your old age; it is you who have personally pushed our son into the pit of fire."

Hu Buwei lowered his head and said softly, "I sent him to Xichuan because I feared that turmoil in the court would affect the Hu family; if our Hu family ever ran into trouble, at least we could preserve this sole heir."

"Do you think Li Tianheng will treat him well? In the past Li Tianheng was willing to ally with us through marriage only because you were the Dakang Minister of Revenue, holding Dakang's financial power. Now the eldest prince has inherited the throne, the crown prince has been killed—one emperor, one set of ministers; you don't yet know what your future will hold. Recall when the emperor deposed the crown prince, you spoke up repeatedly; now that the eldest prince has gained power, he may not spare you. Although the Li family's rebellion appears righteous, flying the banner of purging the ruler and establishing orthodoxy, in truth the eldest prince is the legitimate heir. Li Tianheng's seizure of Xichuan, relying on its natural defenses, leaves him carefree for the time being. If he proclaims himself king, what use could the Hu family still have for him? My poor child…" Xu Fengyi said this, her heart aching, and tears spilled forth.

Hu Buwei had long understood the reasoning his wife gave; he asked himself, having exhausted all schemes, yet alas, man's plans cannot match heaven's, and he never anticipated Li Tianheng's rebellion. Sending his son to Xichuan was merely meant to give the Hu family a retreat; now it seems no different from personally throwing his son into a tiger's den. He knows Li Tianheng's character very well—this man is resolute and decisive, acts swiftly and firmly, and once he decides something it is hard to change; his seizure of Xichuan and self‑proclamation as king are clearly not a sudden decision, for Li Tianheng must have pondered it deeply beforehand and made thorough preparations.

Recalling the couplet Li Tianheng had once sent him—"South bridge head, two crossings like shuttles, horizontally weaving brocade in the river; west bank end, a tower like a brush, straightly writing heavenly verses"—this couplet now seems full of deep meaning. The "river" likely refers to Dakang; the "two crossings" may be the crown prince Long Yeqing and the eldest prince Long Yelin, the upper line describing how these two princes hurry back and forth on the river, yet the one truly capable of writing heavenly verses is the tower at the west bank's end. Only now does he realize that the "west bank" is Xichuan and the "tower" is Li Tianheng himself. Hu Buwei silently sighed, "Li Tianheng harbors extraordinary ambitions; he has harbored rebellious intent all along—why did I only grasp this now?"

Actually, the lower line of that couplet was merely a casual response by Hu Xiaotian, who had not given it much thought at the time. Now, through Hu Buwei's interpretation, it has acquired a prophetic sense—just as ancient writers' mistaken characters later became interchangeable loanwords, this is due to over‑interpretation.

Hu Buwei now finds himself in a dilemma: the new emperor has just ascended the throne, a time when officials vie to show loyalty, yet today comes the news that Li Tianheng has raised troops and declared himself ruler. He ought to immediately sever ties with Li Tianheng publicly, but his son remains under Li Tianheng's jurisdiction, so he cannot help but hesitate; provoking Li Tianheng, given his temperament, would likely bring retaliation upon his own son.

Seeing her husband remain silent, Xu Fengyi could not help but grow anxious: "Come on, speak! The Hu family has only this sole heir; if anything happens to him—any misfortune—how am I supposed to go on living?" She choked back a sob, wiped her tears, and declared, "Tonight I will go to Xichuan; no matter the cost, I will bring Xiaotian back safe and sound." She then sprang to her feet.

Hu Buwei seized her wrist and said, "Fengyi, don't make a scene!"

Xu Fengyi shook off his hand angrily: "Me making a scene? It's not because you sent our son to Xichuan that I would act this way? You won't go, so I will! Write me a divorce letter now—I, Xu Fengyi, will take responsibility for my own actions; whatever happens will have nothing to do with the Hu family." A son is a mother's heart and flesh; thinking of her son in Xichuan, constantly fearing for his life, she felt as though sitting on pins and needles, wishing she could sprout wings and fly to his side at once.

Hu Buwei said, "Fengyi, Xiaotian is also my son; I am just as anxious and worried, but what good does worrying do? I have already sent Hu Tianxiong to lead people immediately to Xichuan, striving to rescue Xiaotian; even if he is saved, he cannot return to the capital. My past transgression against the eldest prince—once he takes the throne, he will surely re‑employ his former close aides, and I believe Zhou Ruizhen will nine out of ten become the incumbent premier. If he does become premier, I will certainly gain nothing." Recalling when Zhou Ruizhen was demoted, he had once fiercely impeached him; although his motive was the earlier broken engagement of the Zhou family, he had thought Zhou Ruizhen would disappear from sight forever, never to rise again—yet he did not expect the tides to turn, and the depos ed eldest prince Long Yelin would actually ascend the throne. Thus one should always leave a margin of leeway in life; Hu Buwei has been tormented by remorse for his past deeds.

This chapter is dedicated to the husband of the new alliance leader Qida Nei; thanks for the promotion, thanks for the support, thanks to all who silently support Zhangyu brothers and sisters! Let's hear another roar for the Monthly Ticket!