Chapter 370: Chapter 242: A Most Vicious Plan

By now, it was late in the evening.

Amid the thunderstorm, the number of pedestrians had dwindled significantly.

Even the patrolling government officials and Imprisonment Officers were nowhere to be seen.

Only a few shops and government offices along South Street still had people on guard.

Dull yellow lanterns swayed, illuminating the surroundings and faintly revealing the sheets of falling rain.

Taking advantage of the deserted streets, Chen Yi slipped over to the Liu Family residence, not far from the Governor’s Office.

He scanned the area.

Seeing no sign of Liu Lang, he deactivated the Black Tortoise Concealment Technique, and his True Essence began to circulate freely within him once more.

Then, he shattered a piece of rubble with a palm strike before his figure vanished into a corner.

Before long, Chen Yi saw a sneaky figure approaching.

When the man arrived, he surveyed his surroundings. Seeing no one, he let out a soft sound of confusion.

"No one’s here?"

Chen Yi recognized the voice. Confirming it was Liu Lang, he gave a soft cough and stepped out from the shadows.

"Over here."

Liu Lang started. "Boss?"

Chen Yi nodded slightly and gestured for him to move away. "This isn’t the place to talk."

The two then left the Liu Family residence one after another, hurrying toward South City’s Yanhua Lane.

Only after they had gone a good distance and found a secluded corner did Chen Yi finally stop.

Following behind him, Liu Lang asked with a smile, "Boss, what brings you out tonight?"

"If you hadn’t come, I was planning to look for you tomorrow."

Chen Yi asked calmly, "What have you found?"

At his question, a slight smile appeared on Liu Lang’s face. "I have indeed found something."

"Do you remember the granary fire over in the East Market?"

Chen Yi raised an eyebrow, a few suspicions immediately forming in his mind. "What did you overhear at his place?"

"If I’m not mistaken, he was the one who killed that merchant collaborating with his second son, the one called Lin Huai’an."

Hearing Liu Lang’s words, Chen Yi’s expression shifted slightly. "You’re saying he sent someone to kill Lin Huai’an? You heard this with your own ears?"

Liu Lang nodded repeatedly, pointing to his ear. "That night, after I followed Liu the Second home, that old fox was waiting for him at the door."

"The moment they met, he didn’t say a word. He just grabbed a whip and gave Liu the Second a vicious lashing."

"Only after that did they start talking about it. Tsk, tsk. It took me a while to understand what was going on."

Chen Yi frowned subconsciously, his mind racing.

He had witnessed Lin Huai’an’s death firsthand—it had been by poisoning.

He had originally thought it was the work of that insatiably greedy wife, but now it seemed there was a hidden secret he hadn’t known.

’So it was Liu Hong?’

As he thought, Chen Yi spoke. "Tell me everything you heard, word for word."

Without a second thought, Liu Lang recounted everything he had overheard that day.

Things like how Liu Taofang and Lin Huai’an had conspired to burn the summer grain supply of the Three Towns, then drive up grain prices in Shu State, intending to sell off their family’s old stock.

Furthermore, after doing all this, they planned to blame it on the Xiao Family, claiming that Elder Master Xiao’s grain purchases were what caused the price hike.

He also mentioned that Lin Huai’an was from the Ji State Trading Company, among other things.

"...In the end, that old fox ordered his second son not to leave the house anytime soon, and told him to deny everything if anyone asked about Lin Huai’an."

After hearing the full story, Chen Yi’s brow furrowed even deeper.

Not only did Liu Hong know that Lin Huai’an was from the Ji State Trading Company, but he also knew what the company was doing up north—smuggling salt, iron, and weapons.

’Since Liu Hong knew all this, why would he kill Lin Huai’an?’

’Was it just because Liu Taofang was involved?’

Chen Yi thought it over and over, feeling that a man like Liu Hong wouldn’t have killed Lin Huai’an for such a simple reason.

This was especially true after learning from Liu Lang that Liu Hong suspected there were other reasons behind the deaths of Liu Wen and Xiao Dongchen.

He now knew that Liu Hong was an extremely cunning and meticulous man.

’A man like that must have a deeper motive for his actions.’

Immediately after, another question surfaced in Chen Yi’s mind:

’How did Liu Hong find out about Liu Taofang and Lin Huai’an’s conspiracy ahead of time?’

’Thinking it over, there’s only one possibility: someone must have tipped him off!’

’And only two parties could have done that—someone close to Liu Taofang, or someone close to Lin Huai’an.’

’Furthermore, given that Liu Hong was able to order Lin Huai’an’s death, the latter is more likely than the former.’

As Chen Yi considered this, a cold, harsh look appeared on his face.

’It seems I’ve underestimated this Governor.’

Liu Lang, oblivious to these thoughts, saw him remain silent for a long moment and couldn’t help but ask:

"Boss, what do you want me to do next? Should I keep an eye on that old fox?"

Chen Yi snapped back to reality at the question and took a deep breath. "Keep watching him for a few more days."

"I need to clarify a few things before I decide on the next step."

What he had learned from Liu Lang tonight forced him to re-evaluate Liu Hong.

He also had to rethink his subsequent plans and make some adjustments.

He had to avoid trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice used to lure it.

Fortunately, after devising his plan to deal with the Liu Family and Liu Hong, he hadn’t acted rashly, instead sending Liu Lang to watch them.

There was still plenty of time to scheme and lay his groundwork.

If not for this, he likely would have underestimated Liu Hong’s capabilities and made a critical misjudgment.

Hearing this, Liu Lang said with great interest, "That old fox is hiding his hand so well. I’m curious to see what he’s planning, too."

Chen Yi grunted in acknowledgment, then thought for a moment before asking, "Who has he met with recently, and what has he been doing?"

"Most of the time, he’s at the government office handling official business."

"He leaves his residence before dawn every day and only returns from the Governor’s Office in the evening. He rarely has visitors."

At this point, Liu Lang paused. "Although, a man with the surname Ma has visited twice."

"He comes alone each time and huddles with Liu Hong in the study, talking about mysterious things."

Chen Yi’s heart skipped a beat. He looked at him and asked, "Ma Shuhan?"

"Yes, that’s the name."

"But I saw they were just talking about things like scholars, the Annual Examination, and the imperial exams, so I didn’t pay much attention."

"During their conversations, did they mention Mr. Yue Ming, or the names of anyone else in Shu State?"

Seeing how concerned he was, Liu Lang began to think back carefully.

"Mr. Yue Ming... I think so. There were quite a few other names too, like Mr. Zhuo Ying and Mr. Lingchuan."

"Oh, right, and also Right Governor Yang Ye, as well as names from the Tang Family and the Wan Family."

"Tang Zixing?"

"No, it was someone named Tang Yeren."

"That Ma fellow said he also holds the rank of a Scholar, and if he doesn’t pass the Annual Examination, it would definitely infuriate his old man."

"Then Liu Hong said something like—’If that weren’t the case, why would I go to all this trouble?’ and then the two of them started laughing."

Liu Lang grinned. "Looks like they’re scheming against someone. But don’t the Annual Examinations happen regularly anyway?"

Hearing this, Chen Yi raised a hand to quiet him as a flash of insight struck him.

He thought he understood Liu Hong and Ma Shuhan’s plan—to use the Annual Examination to eliminate their rivals.

Simply put, they would win over those who could be won over, and get rid of those who needed to be gotten rid of.

"I see."

’No wonder Ma Shuhan wanted to submit a memorial to change the penalties of the Sixth Rank Technique.’

’Only by doing so could he cooperate with Liu Hong to blackmail the other scholars from the Noble Families.’

’Tang Ye, for example.’

’His father is the Inspector General of the Inspectorate Office.’

’If, after this Annual Examination, Tang Ye only achieves the third rank—or is stripped of his title for placing below the third rank—it would certainly damage the Tang Family’s reputation.’

’Not only would it waste several years of Tang Ye’s life, but it would also implicate Tang Zixing, the Inspector General.’

’Conversely, if Tang Zixing were to align himself with Liu Hong, then Tang Ye’s results in the Annual Examination would surely be outstanding.’

’He might even take the top spot in the subsequent imperial exams.’

’As for someone like him, the son-in-law of the Xiao Family, giving him a fourth-rank result would be enough to send the reputation he had built up from his poetry and calligraphy plummeting.’

’Most importantly, Ma Shuhan would be the public face of it all, making it difficult for anyone to suspect Liu Hong was the one pulling the strings.’

’I’m afraid Ma Shuhan’s purpose in inviting Mr. Yue Ming to be the Vice Examiner is to frame him for the poor performance of Shu State’s scholars in the Annual Examination, isn’t it?’

’I have to say, this is a truly venomous scheme!’

’It’s a plan to kill three birds with one stone!’

Chen Yi watched the rain fall around him, thinking silently, ’It seems this Liu Hong’s ambition is no small thing.’

’No wonder he was able to establish a firm foothold in Shu State on his own, despite only being from the third branch of the Jing State Liu Family.’

’This ability to leverage power for his own gain is beyond that of an ordinary person.’

Seeing his expression, Liu Lang raised an eyebrow. "Boss, is something wrong?"

"No. Go back and keep a close watch on him, especially when that Ma Shuhan comes to visit..."

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