Chapter 258: The Empress's Pretty Boy

Three days later.

Lin Daiyu was already able to get out of bed; although she still looked somewhat weak, her life could be considered saved.

Jia Tanchun and the others were both pleasantly surprised and felt it was incredible.

"That Sister Su is simply a fairy doctor..."

The Jia family's many maidservants also had a new place to go, living in the Daguanyuan nearby, and could come over to play in their spare time.

However, the Jia Mansion would no longer provide them with any food or monthly allowances.

With Jia Zheng's tacit consent, Jia Tanchun also moved into the Daguanyuan and began managing the entire garden, while simultaneously managing the fields, shops, and other properties under Luo Zijun's name.

In the future, once silver was collected, apart from taking out a small portion to maintain the daily expenses of everyone in the Daguanyuan, the rest would all be sent to Luo Zijun.

With the Jia Mansion rid of people like Jia She and Jia Zhen who were arrogant, extravagant, and debauched, the remaining industries could barely support the lives of those left in the mansion.

Due to the loss of her official position and influence, Wang Xifeng could no longer obtain extra income and could only be frugal, tighten her belt, and at the same time, begin to personally manage the remaining businesses.

At the same time, Shi Xiangyun and some of the sisters also moved into the Daguanyuan at the invitation of Jia Tanchun and Bai Qingtong.

Shi Xiangyun had always suffered and toiled at home without being favored, and now that the Shi Family had suffered an even greater blow, if she did not leave, she would likely be sold off soon.

From then on, of the Inner City Four Great Families, apart from the Bai Family, the other three had completely declined.

During this period, Jia Laotaitai often wept and sighed at home: "What a pity, if we had brought that Young Master Luo to our Jia Mansion in the beginning, it wouldn't have led to these two Duke mansions being destroyed in our hands..."

Jia Zheng, standing to the side, could not help but say: "If Lai Da hadn't harmed that family, it wouldn't have come to this."

Upon hearing this, Jia Laotaitai immediately scolded: "Are you saying you blame me? Is it because I agreed to let Lai Mama have Lai Da serve as the steward of our Rongguo Mansion? You foolish thing, you still don't know the real reason. Even without Lai Da, the palace would have taken action against us, unless we were like the Bai Family and found a favored backer. Also, your eldest brother and those bastards like Jia Zhen did so many unconscionable things; this is retribution!"

Jia Zhen did not dare to argue.

Jia Tanchun, standing to the side, tried to persuade her.

Jia Laotaitai looked at her, her tone becoming gentle, and sighed: "If it weren't for Tanchun, everyone in our Jia Mansion would have to go to prison. These houses and fields would all be confiscated. That Young Master Luo interceding for us before the Queen was all for Tanchun's sake."

She then let out a long sigh and said: "At the time, I also blame myself for lacking vision and courage, looking down on Young Master Luo. If I had let Tanchun marry Young Master Luo back then, I reckon he would have gladly agreed immediately, and we wouldn't have fallen into this current predicament."

Jia Tanchun smiled bitterly: "The Old Ancestor is overthinking it. Young Master Luo is not lacking for women like me. Not to mention Qingtong and her sister, even Minister Liu's Young Lady is no worse than me. And there is also..."

In her mind, the figure of that woman wearing a plain white dress, cold and aloof, beautiful as a celestial being, appeared once again.

In the Daguanyuan, everyone was also discussing it.

"If Young Master Luo hadn't taken us in, we would probably all be wandering the streets by now..."

"I have no one left in my family; if I were driven out, I really wouldn't know where to go, perhaps I would have starved to death long ago..."

"We must work hard in the future and be worthy of Young Master Luo."

Ever since Luo Zijun took his senior sister to the Daguanyuan once, he had never gone again.

It was full of women, all chirping and fluttering about; it was truly inconvenient.

Of course, it was mainly because his senior sister had said: "If you come here again, you must bring me with you. Otherwise, hmph..."

Therefore, he couldn't be bothered to go again.

All matters in the Daguanyuan were left to Jia Tanchun to handle; if there was anything, he would have Liu Chujian or his sister-in-law go over.

He did not want to take his senior sister with him again.

The last time they went, his senior sister was sarcastic the whole way; whether she saw a maid, a married woman, or a beautiful pavilion, house, or other scenery, she had to mock it a few times, making him very embarrassed.

In fact, the result he wanted in his heart was exactly this.

By his own methods, he had changed the fates of those people; at least they would no longer be as tragic as written in the book, and that was enough.

As for the future, let nature take its course.

The Jia Mansion affair could be considered to have come to an end; next, he had to work hard on Soul Refining to reach the Fen Shen Realm, and then completely get rid of the White Snake's task.

And then, he would have a showdown with Bai Daxiaojie and have her divorce him.

Once he regained his freedom, he would... marry the girl he liked, and then grow old with her.

Well, if this life were like this, it could also be considered wonderful.

However, there were always some accidents that disturbed his life.

The Wu Chu Allied Forces had already breached two cities on the border of Liang and were beginning to advance toward Lin'an City.

Just as he had expected, Liang sent people to request reinforcements from Great Yan, but the general Great Yan sent to guard Luoyang only offered kind comfort and perfunctorily gave some grain and fodder, without sending any troops to support them.

Liang was now left alone, facing the high-spirited Wu Chu Allied Forces.

These past few days, Luo Zijun went to the palace every day to discuss the subsequent deployment and preparations with the Queen and others.

A large amount of grain had already been stockpiled within Lin'an City, and the nation's military strength had been gathered.

The old, weak, sick, and disabled within the city had all been sent away in advance.

At the same time, all city gates were closed, no one was allowed to leave the city privately, and they began searching for spies sent by Wu and Chu within the city.

On this day, Luo Zijun went to the palace again.

There was no one else in the study; the Queen stood alone in front of the wall, contemplating the map on the wall.

After Luo Zijun arrived behind her and paid his respects, he waited quietly.

After a long while, the Queen looked at the map and slowly spoke: "This palace does not want to exhaust all of Liang's soldiers and wealth in this war. Minister Luo, what strategy do you have?"

Luo Zijun said respectfully: "Hasn't Your Majesty already decided?"

The Queen turned around, looked at him, and said: "This palace has decided to preserve strength, but at this moment, it is beyond my control. Yujing has sent a supervising official, and the two countries of Wu and Chu are attacking very urgently; they will arrive at Lin'an City soon."

Luo Zijun pondered for a moment and said: "At this time, Your Majesty can negotiate terms with Yujing. Then, deliberately spread the word that Liang may not be able to hold out and is preparing to surrender. As for that supervising official, he is now in Liang, not in Yujing; Your Majesty can manipulate him at will, or even make him disappear."

The Queen looked at him and said: "What if Yujing still does not agree to the terms, and Luoyang does not send troops to rescue us?"

Luo Zijun lowered his head and remained silent.

The Queen stared at him for a while, then came before him, her towering chest almost touching his chest, and said in a low voice: "At a time like this, is Minister Luo still hesitating? There is no one else here; this palace has already told you my thoughts, and you should also say what you are thinking in your heart. You should be clear that if Liang is gone, and this palace is gone, you and the Bai Family will definitely not survive."

Luo Zijun did not hesitate anymore, raised his head, met her charming peach-blossom eyes, and said: "If the situation is truly as Your Majesty says, then this subject believes that our Liang can send people to negotiate with the Seven Kingdoms, and together... launch a pincer attack on Luoyang and break into Yujing."

The room was quiet for a few seconds.

The Queen revealed a look of satisfaction on her face and said, "This Palace thinks the same. Since Yujing is heartless, our Daliang will naturally be unrighteous. To want our Daliang to use the entire country to lead the charge for them without giving any benefits—does he think we are fools?"

Luo Zijun hesitated for a moment and asked, "What conditions does Your Highness want to negotiate with Yujing?"

The Queen did not hide it and said with a haughty face, "Daliang's finance, military, commerce, and so on must be completely independent and decided by ourselves; Yujing is not allowed to station officials here. At the same time, they must recognize my status as Queen."

Luo Zijun did not speak again.

The former was fine; after all, the finances, military, and so on of the various vassal states were already mostly independent. As for the latter, recognizing her legal status as Queen, I fear that...

A person of a different surname cannot be King, let alone a woman of a different surname.

Luo Zijun pondered for a moment and said, "Since Your Highness has such thoughts, I feel that we should send people to contact the King of Wu and the King of Chu now, secretly sign a contract with them, and have their Seven Kingdoms join forces to attack Luoyang and go straight into Yujing. Our Daliang will definitely not launch a sneak attack from behind."

The Queen frowned slightly: "Now?"

Luo Zijun nodded and said, "Yes, now. The Seven-Nation Alliance joining forces to attack Luoyang is the optimal strategy; they should know this too. It is just that they are afraid that our Daliang will join Yujing to pincer-attack them from behind, which is why the states of Wu and Chu want to quickly take down our Daliang. As long as we send a lobbyist to persuade them, the Seven-Nation Alliance will directly fight the army sent by Yujing. No matter who wins, neither side will dare to move against us easily; after all, both sides will have consumed too much, while our Daliang will have preserved its strength. If..."

"Actually, the best situation is that the Seven-Nation Alliance weakens Yujing, Yujing also weakens the Seven Kingdoms, and then the entire Great Yan falls into chaos. Then every vassal state can seek independence... By then, our Daliang might be the strongest one."

Luo Zijun spoke eloquently, and the Queen listened attentively, frowning from time to time, and occasionally a hint of excitement appeared in her eyes.

It was not until evening that Luo Zijun drank some tea and took his leave.

The Queen stood alone in the study, looking at the map on the wall, and remained silent for a long time before muttering to herself, "If Daliang can really become an independent country by then, then you will be the... boy toy of the first Empress of Daliang."

Luo Zijun was lost in thought along the way and did not return directly to the Bai Mansion, but instead came to Bao'an Hall.

"Master, Senior Sister, I have something to discuss with you."

After entering the door and seeing that there were no customers in the shop, he immediately closed the door and lowered his voice, saying, "Daliang is very dangerous; you must find a way to leave here first."

As he spoke, he told them about the Seven Kingdoms Rebellion and the Queen's idea of ascending the throne to become King.

At this moment, the ones he cared about most were naturally his Senior Sister and Master.

After Su Dafang finished listening, his face was full of shock: "The Queen wants to become King? She is a woman... Zijun, why does she trust you so much that she even discusses such rebellious matters with you?"

Su Qingling's gaze also looked at him coldly.

Luo Zijun said speechlessly, "Master, let's not talk about other things at this time. You and Senior Sister must leave quickly, and take my sister and brother-in-law with you. I will find a way to send you out of the city."

Su Dafang frowned and said, "What about you?"

Luo Zijun said, "I need to stay. Regardless of success or failure, I will escape and then come to find you."

Su Dafang looked strange: "Then why don't you leave with us now?"

Luo Zijun was silent for a moment and said, "Master, the Bai Family has been kind to me, and the Queen also helped me take revenge, so I must stay to help them. I can escape at any time while I am here alone; my only worry is you. Therefore, I hope you will leave first and go to a safe place."

Su Dafang sighed and said, "You said it yourself, the entire Great Yan is in chaos; where can we escape to?"

Luo Zijun said, "In the mountains, remote areas, or other countries."

He suddenly thought of a country and said, "The Daughter Kingdom?"

Su Dafang was stunned, secretly glanced into the counter, and said nothing more.

Luo Zijun knew that Senior Sister was the one in charge of this family.

He had no choice but to look into the counter and say, "Senior Sister, I still have a chance to send you out of the city now. If it's a few days later, I'm afraid it will be difficult. You, Master, and my sister and brother-in-law should go to a safe place and wait for me; I will come to find you then."

Su Qingling said expressionlessly, "What if you don't come?"

Luo Zijun said, "How could I not come? By the way, take Liu Chujian and Xiaohuan with you as well."

Su Dafang's lips moved, as if he wanted to say something, but he held back.

Su Qingling lowered her head and fiddled with the abacus for a few times, then said indifferently, "I'm not leaving."

Luo Zijun stared at her for a while and suddenly said, "Senior Sister, if you listen to me, I will come to find you after I divorce Bai Daxiaojie, and then... *cough*..."

He looked at his Master, who was pricking up his ears to the side.

Su Dafang immediately glared and said, "Why are you looking at me? Is there anything your master cannot hear?"

Luo Zijun looked back at the counter and was about to speak when a burst of noisy footsteps suddenly came from outside, followed by someone knocking on the door.

"Open the door! Open the door!"

Luo Zijun immediately went over and opened the shop door.

To his surprise, a group of soldiers stood outside the door. Seeing the door open, they said with angry faces, "Why are you keeping the door closed in broad daylight? Those with adult males in the house, register immediately. Those who are old, weak, sick, or disabled, hand them over immediately."

As he spoke, the leader was about to push Luo Zijun aside and barge directly into the shop.

Who would have thought that the moment his hand touched Luo Zijun's shoulder, he was kicked flying with a "bang."

The other soldiers outside saw this scene and were suddenly furious, immediately drawing the blades at their waists.

The leader clutched his stomach and climbed up from the ground. Just as he was about to curse and order his men to take action, he suddenly saw Luo Zijun take out two Waist Tokens.

"Get your person in charge over here. I am a member of the Bai Family and also a Counselor personally appointed by the Queen. Everyone in this shop is my family. If you want to go in, go ask your person in charge how many heads they have!"

As soon as these words were spoken, all the soldiers were startled.

The leader opened his mouth, hurriedly walked closer, and looked at the Waist Tokens in his hand.

This low-ranking soldier naturally did not recognize the Waist Token given by the Queen, but he recognized the Bai Family's Waist Token. He immediately knew he had caused a great disaster and knelt down in a panic to beg for mercy: "Young Master, spare my life! We were blind and failed to recognize a person of importance, offending you..."

While kowtowing like pounding garlic, he apologized and begged for mercy in fear.

"Get lost!"

Luo Zijun did not waste words with them and told them to inform the other soldiers that no one was allowed to enter this shop.

After the group of soldiers left, he closed the shop door again, looked at the counter and his Master who had come over from the backyard, and said, "The city is already in chaos; you must leave here as soon as possible. Senior Sister, you may not be afraid, but what about Master? Now they have started searching house by house in the city; if by any chance..."

Su Qingling suddenly said, "We will go live in Daguanyuan."

Luo Zijun: "???"

Su Dafang was stunned upon hearing this, looked at the two, and asked in confusion, "What kind of place is Daguanyuan?"

Su Qingling looked at someone with a cold gaze and explained, "Someone's harem."

(End of chapter)