Qian Qi said, “If I leave, who can lead the troops? I don’t think the imperial court will hurt my family.”
Xiao Baoshan explained, “I used to think the same thing, but now I realize that the imperial court has completely changed. Although there are still a few good officials, their power can’t rival the those who are corrupt.”
Qian Qi was hesitant.
Xiao Baoshan suggested, “If you trust me, you can write a letter home for me to show your relatives. Then, I can escort them out of the capital safely. If the imperial court believes you, they won’t hurt your family. But if they want to threaten you using those you care about, you will then know how corrupt the imperial court has become.”
Qian Qi asked, “If I get my family out, they will have a reason to say I’m inciting mutiny.”
Xiao Baoshan smiled. “Then you can only kill us and let the war spread to border areas.”
After thinking for a long while, Qian Qi finally accepted Xiao Baoshan’s advice.
Xiao Baoshan then led a dozen elite soldiers to the capital with a letter written by Qian Qi. The situation was so urgent that they hurried directly there without stopping.
…
The capital.
Li Chengkun and the state preceptor met again at the secret location. While it kept drizzling outside, they were playing Go face to face in a corridor.
Li Chengkun placed a black piece on the board and asked, “Where are Qian Qi’s troops now?”
The state preceptor replied, “It has been raining in the south. It is said they are blocked by a landslide, so they are still in Baoning city at the moment.”
Hearing that, the poker-faced prince frowned involuntarily. He asked, “Where is Xiao Baoshan? Do you know what he is doing?”
“Xiao Baoshan? Humph!” The state preceptor suddenly got angry. “He has disbanded the army, letting the soldiers return to their families. Now, he is admired by all the southern people. Some of them even want to build a temple for him.”
Li Chengkun’s brows furrowed even more tightly. “Will Qian Qi betray us?”
“I guess he won’t.” The state preceptor put down a white piece and continued. “His admiration for his elder brother is as much as what Li Chengru feels for the fourth prince. Both of them will kill Xiao Baoshan as soon as they find him. Isn’t that the reason we sent Qian Qi to do this?”
Li Chengkun said faintly, “Don’t be overly confident. Everything is unknown until we hear from Qian Qi himself.”
The state preceptor asked in surprise, “You think he might betray us? If so, we will be faced with a great deal of trouble.”
Li Chengkun said, “It’s always good to take precautions.”
The state preceptor thought of something and said, “The best way to control Qian Qi is to control his family members, who are always united as one. By then, Qian Qi will naturally obey us.”
…
The Qian family.
There were only two women, several kids and an old lady in Qian Qi’s residence. However, the atmosphere was neither dull nor dispiriting. As an old saying goes, the family atmosphere was the best fengshui. Everyone in the Qian family was kind and respectful to others, creating a harmonious living environment. Their faces were all glowing with health and even the old lady always looked radiant. This family had been cultivating military talents for generations. All the people in this family, including the servants, knew a great deal about martial arts.
At that moment, the children were reading military books, the old lady was taking a nap and the women were embroidering and chatting. But then, a group of soldiers arrived and surrounded the house.
The Qians were all confused. Old Mrs. Qian went out and asked, “Did we make some sort of mistake?”
The group leader said respectfully, “Mrs. Qian, don’t worry. You can do anything you want except for going out. We won’t hurt you.”
Old Mrs. Qian thought of her son and asked, “Did Qian Qi do anything wrong?”
He replied, “No. General Qian is fighting against the enemy forces in the south. It’s not safe outside, so we’ve been sent to protect you.”
“Do you have the document from the Imperial Court of Justice or permission from the governor-general?”
The man said, “We have the document.”
The old lady looked somewhat worried.
…
The news that the Qian family had been besieged soon spread throughout the capital.
“Why are the soldiers besieging General Qian’s house?”
“The capital has been peaceful recently and the Qian family also has its own guards. Obviously, the soldiers were sent to monitor the Qians. But General Qian is fighting in the south now.”
“Humph! Do you know who he is fighting against? The sixth prince.”
“Isn’t he fighting against the foreign enemies?”
“Of course not. The sixth prince has already beaten back the enemies. Now General Qian has been sent to kill the sixth prince who is suspected of plotting a rebellion. But as far as I know, the sixth prince’s army was disbanded after the war.”
“Oh? It must have something to do with party-related strife.”
“I suppose so.”
Such discussions could be heard anywhere in the capital. At the same time, the Qian family went into panic. Fortunately, Old Mrs. Qian remained calm and controlled the overall situation.
In the hall, she analyzed the situation soberly. “I guess this is not about Hongyan’s invasion but the domestic, party-related strife. Although the sixth prince is far from the capital near the border, he has won the hearts of the people after handling the enemy. But that also makes him a thorn in some people’s sides. Anyhow, if he wants to enlarge his army, nobody can really stop it. The imperial court is afraid he might make himself king of the border areas.”
Her elder daughter-in-law asked, “Are they afraid that our brother will refuse to kill the sixth prince?”
Old Mrs. Qian looked more than serious. “Qi is an upright man who can tell right from wrong. Besides, our family precepts require that we can only kill enemies or traitors, and mustn’t participate in party-related strife. If the sixth prince is innocent, Qi will not attack Baoning city.”
“So those men want to hold us hostage and control my husband!” Qian Qi’s wife was irritated.
“I suppose so,” said Old Mrs. Qian.
The elder woman then said, “We can’t surrender ourselves to these villains. We must try to help Qi.”
The younger woman echoed, “Yes! Anyway, we should break out of here.”
Old Mrs. Qian said faintly, “We have no way of escaping. We’re heavily surrounded! Besides, if we break out, they will then assume Qi is going against the imperial court.”
“What should we do then? We must figure out a way to help Qi even at the cost of our lives.”
