Chapter 273: Killing with Someone Else’s Hand (Part 1)

Early in the morning, Gao Lishi returned from the palace. He had been on duty the previous night and barely slept at all. Being of advanced age, he no longer possessed the same energy as in his youth; a sleepless night left him utterly exhausted. Yet upon returning to his residence, he immediately went to see Li Qing’an.
“Qilang, do you know? The Emperor intends to send Prince Di to Anxi to take up a position there.”
“Prince Di!” Li Qing’an frowned. How could it be him?
Although the decision to send a prince to Anxi was a private conversation between Li Longji and Li Linfu, news of it spread throughout the court by various channels yesterday afternoon. Yet no one had yet been chosen for the role, and there were many discussions among the princes. In truth, none of them wanted to go to Anxi—it meant being far away from the power center of the Tang Dynasty. Especially with the succession to the throne still uncertain, almost every prince harbored some hope of securing that position, whether they competed for it or not.
Of course, as someone directly affected by this decision, Li Qing’an couldn’t possibly remain indifferent. Last night at Li Linfu’s house, he didn’t show any shock or disdain; it was merely an act. In reality, he cared about this matter more than anyone else. Li Longji’s decision to strengthen Anxi was good news, but sending a prince there to prevent local military governors from gaining too much power was bad news. How to maximize the benefits and minimize the drawbacks was something Li Qing’an needed to consider. He had his own candidate in mind, but it wasn’t Prince Di—this prince was too close to Yang Guozhong and too shrewd; sending him to Anxi would not be beneficial for him.
“Elder Gao, is this already the Emperor’s final decision?”
“It isn’t officially finalized yet, but if nothing goes wrong, it will likely be him. Recently, he has been overly aggressive in his bid for succession, which has greatly displeased the Emperor. Many court officials also believe he should succeed to the throne and have secretly sent letters of loyalty to him. That’s why the Emperor decided to send him to Anxi to crush his hopes of becoming heir.”
“So you mean the Emperor already knows the assassination attempt was fake?” Li Qing’an pressed.
Gao Lishi smiled. “Didn’t you reveal the truth yesterday? How could he not know? Last night, he even flew into a rage at Yang Guozhong. I reckon Linghu Fei is in trouble.”
Li Qing’an thought for a moment before asking, “Could it be Yang Guozhong who suggested sending Prince Di to Anxi?”
Gao Lishi pondered for a while before saying, “It’s possible. The decision to send Prince Di to Anxi was made after Yang Guozhong was reprimanded. It is said he complained quite a bit at that time; likely that’s where the suggestion came from.”

At this, Gao Lishi gave another wry smile and said, “As you know, he no longer allows me to be around when such matters arise, so I’ve only heard about it.”
Li Qing’an bowed to him and said, “Thank you, Lord Gao, for telling me. There’s one more thing I’d like to ask for your help with.”
“Go ahead and tell me. As long as it’s within my ability, I’ll definitely help you.”
Li Qing’an hesitated for a moment before saying, “I would like to meet the Imperial Concubine and ask her for a favor. Could you please arrange this for me?”
“Well…”
Gao Lishi seemed troubled. “For a commoner to meet the Imperial Concubine requires the Emperor’s permission. I’m not what I used to be; I might not be able to help you with this.”
“No! Lord Gao, you misunderstand. I just want you to convey a message to her. If she’s willing to see me, she’ll go talk to the Emperor herself. There’s no need for you to go through any trouble.”
“That’s no problem, but…”
At “but,” Gao Lishi glanced at Li Qing’an warily and asked, “Why do you want to meet the Concubine?”
Although Gao Lishi had a good personal relationship with Li Qing’an and had helped him many times, there was always one condition: it couldn’t harm the Emperor’s interests. He was a man of strong principles. Though he had been neglected by Li Longji in recent years due to matters involving the crown prince, this neglect hadn’t changed his loyalty to Li Longji. Li Qing’an was well aware of this, so their conversations were always kept within certain limits. For example, regarding Prince Di’s mission to Anxi, Gao Lishi would only tell him the outcome, and Li Qing’an would only ask whether it was final. As for whether it could be changed or how, Gao Lishi wouldn’t say, nor would Li Qing’an ask.
And Li Qing’an’s desire to meet Yang Guifei was also a sensitive topic. Gao Lishi knew better than anyone about Li Longji’s current health condition. In some aspects, Li Longji was already unable to handle things effectively. If Li Qing’an tried to get close to Yang Guifei, it might cause a major uproar. For instance, a few years ago, Li Qing’an had taught Yang Guifei how to throw a pot, and there had been some inappropriate behavior. Eunuchs had complained to him about it. Although Li Longji hadn’t paid attention at the time, that didn’t mean he wouldn’t care in the future. So Gao Lishi was highly wary of Li Qing’an’s request.
Seeing the concern in Gao Lishi’s puzzled eyes, Li Qing’an quickly explained, “Lord Gao, please don’t misunderstand. I want to ask the Imperial Concubine for help regarding my plan to take Mingyue to Anxi.”
“Oh, so that’s it!”

Gao Lishi felt relieved. In fact, he understood Li Qing’an’s meaning and had also heard some rumors. There were whispers in the palace that since the emperor last saw Dugu Mingyue at the concubine’s birthday banquet, he had been unable to forget her. If those rumors were true, it would indeed be a serious problem. Sometimes the emperor would act in ways that were utterly incomprehensible when confused, and he might make a grave mistake as a result.

“Alright! I’ll go to the palace in a few days and see if I can talk to the empress. If she can’t meet you, I’ll convey your request to her. Does that work for you?”

“Thank you very much, Lord Gao. Qing’an dares not keep you from resting any longer. Please go and rest!”

“I really do need to sleep; I’m completely exhausted.”

Gao Lishi smiled, stretched lazily, then got up and left. As soon as he was gone, Li Qing’an summoned a personal guard and whispered a few instructions to him, saying, “Bring him to Rehai Ju. I need to see him immediately.”

After the guard left, Li Qing’an tidied himself up slightly before telling those around him, “Let’s go! To Rehai Ju.”

……

Generally speaking, military governors who went to the capital to report on their duties stayed for about one to two months, with some even staying longer. Undoubtedly, their real purpose in going to the capital was not to report but to maintain relations with the imperial court and secure more resources for the coming year. Therefore, each governor had his own representative office in the capital, assigning trusted aides to stay there to gather intelligence and cultivate connections on their behalf. Li Qing’an had not been a governor for long enough to establish such an office yet, but that didn’t mean he had no means of communication. Before setting up a proper representative office, he already had two places in the capital with similar functions—one public and one private. The public one was the Anxi Memorial Hall. A few years earlier, he had clashed there with An Qingxu, the son of An Lushan. The Memorial Hall was responsible for receiving officials from Anxi who came to the capital on official business, passing along various reports, and handling other matters such as coordinating with military families. It was a public, officially sanctioned communication agency.

Li Qing’an’s private communication site was Rehai Ju, which was actually a secret meeting place of the Han-Tang Association. Li Qing’an temporarily used it as his personal intelligence agency. Since arriving in the capital, he had been there three times already.

As soon as he arrived at Rehai Ju, Chang Jin came out to greet him and whispered to Li Qing’an, “General, new intelligence has arrived from the Di Wangfu yesterday night.”

“Hmm! Let’s go inside and discuss it.”

After taking a few steps, Li Qingan turned back and said, “Someone will come here to look for me in a moment. Take them straight to the backyard. His surname is Yan—Yan from the King of Hell.” Chang Jin quickly made arrangements and followed Li Qingan to the backyard. Rehaiju was a three-story building. As a tavern, its storefront area wasn’t large, covering at most five or six mu, but its total land footprint was astonishingly vast. Behind the small tavern, it had purchased two houses that extended all the way to a street behind, covering over eighty mu in total. Behind the tavern lay several mysterious rooms accessible only through special passages. Their secrecy was such that even the tavern’s staff and musicians were unaware of them. These rooms remained shut with doors and windows tightly closed year-round, and no one knew what was inside.

Li Qingan entered a mysterious courtyard, which served as the meeting place for the Hantang Society and also as its intelligence sorting center. Intelligence sent from various parts of the Tang Dynasty would gather here, be sorted into categories, summarized, and then the most important information sent to Suiye. This had been the practice for centuries. Before becoming the new leader of Yinlong, Li Qingan didn’t know much about the Hantang Society; he only knew that it operated under the guise of commerce, gathering intelligence from different regions and recruiting members.

It wasn’t until he seized power that he realized what he had seen before was just the tip of the iceberg. The Hantang Society engaged in the most profitable businesses everywhere, reaping huge profits every year. Where did these profits go? Aside from a tiny portion sent back to Suiye, the vast majority remained locally to be used for recruiting members, purchasing land, helping the poor and elderly, establishing schools, and building connections with government officials—all to lay a foundation and build networks for the Hantang Society. Its members were elites from all walks of life, numbering over ten thousand, including scholars, officials, soldiers, artisans, etc. Some members even spanned several generations. It was they who effectively bribed local officials and their low-key, concealed operations that allowed the Hantang Society to survive in the interior regions of the Tang Dynasty. As for the core of the Hantang Society—the Yinlong Club—it was top-secret, known only to twenty-seven people in total, including Li Qingan.

Li Qingan entered the room and sat down. As soon as he entered, he asked, “Have they found Madam Luo and the others?” The sudden disappearance of Madam Luo and the former young master Li Deng shocked the Yinlong Club. They all knew the secrets of the Yinlong Club, and their disappearance posed a threat to its survival as well as to Li Qingan’s safety. The Yinlong Club used the Hantang Society to search for them everywhere, while Li Qingan also mobilized government and military forces to look in Anxi and Beiting, but they remain missing to this day.

Chang Jin sighed and said, “We’ve searched everywhere, but still haven’t found any trace of them. We suspect they didn’t return to the Tang Dynasty but went to the Sogdian states instead.”
“That’s impossible!”
Li Qing’an firmly denied it. “There are records of their passage through Jinman County. They must have returned to the Tang Dynasty.”
He suddenly glanced at Chang Jin with suspicion. “Surely you’re not deliberately hiding something from me!”
Chang Jin hurriedly waved his hands. “General, you’re wrong about me. How could I hide such an important matter? Everyone knows this concerns the safety of the Yinlong Society; no one would ignore it for personal reasons.”
“Very well! Keep searching. We must find them and send them back to Suiye as soon as possible.”
Li Qing’an took a sip of tea before returning to the main topic. “Didn’t you say there was new information about Prince Di’s mansion? Tell me, what is it?”
“It’s this: Lady Sun went to that courtyard for the second time last night. Our men bribed the witch’s maid with a large sum today and have already figured out Lady Sun’s intentions.”
“Is that so? What did she go there for?”
“She went there to conceive a child, but…”
“But what?”
Li Qing’an stared at Chang Jin intently. He had ordered people to spy on Prince Di originally to expose the fake assassin case. Soon, the members of the Hantang Society discovered that Prince Di’s favorite concubine always went alone to a certain courtyard. Since the fake assassin case had been exposed, Li Qing’an stopped paying attention to it. But this morning, Gao Lishi told him that Prince Di was going to Anxi to take command, and Li Qing’an immediately realized the importance of this information again.
Chang Jin hadn’t expected Li Qing’an to take it so seriously. He was shocked and quickly said, “But last night, she also asked the witch for love spells.”
“As I thought!” Li Qing’an muttered to himself.
At that moment, someone reported at the door, “Master, that man surnamed Yan has arrived.”
Chang Jin glanced at Li Qing’an quickly. Li Qing’an nodded, and Chang Jin ordered, “Bring him in!”
Soon, one of Chang Jin’s subordinates brought Yan Kai in in a hurry. Since Li Qiu had recommended Yan Kai to Li Qing’an, they had met once and gotten along well. However, Li Qing’an hadn’t yet expressed his opinion on Yan Kai’s willingness to join them. He needed to see more of this man’s sincerity, so he sent people to investigate. The information he received was that Prince Qing hadn’t seen this man in nearly half a year, and Yan Kai had been idle all day long, restless after staying still for too long. Since it was Li Qiu who recommended him, there should be no problem.
“Yan Kai pays his respects to the General!”

Yan Kai bowed deeply to Li Qing’an. To meet a wise ruler and be able to utilize one’s talents to fulfill the ambition of bringing peace and stability to the country was the dream of every scholar in the Tang Dynasty, and Yan Kai was no exception. He had served as an advisor to Prince Qing for eight years. Now nearly forty, he still had achieved nothing. Prince Qing’s stupidity and stubbornness disappointed him, while his decline filled him with despair.

Birds choose good trees to perch on. With the idea of serving another wise ruler arising in his mind, just as he prepared to seek a new master, Li Qiu recommended him to Li Qing’an. Yan Kai had known Li Qing’an for a long time and had never imagined he would one day become his advisor. After a long conversation with Li Qing’an the day before yesterday, he suddenly realized that Li Qing’an was precisely the wise ruler he had dreamed of all these years—young, capable, in high position, and governing a vast territory that offered ample opportunities for him to prove himself.

Yan Kai was extremely nervous. He had never desired to serve someone as much as he did today. Last time, Li Qing’an hadn’t given him a clear answer—would he offer hope this time?

Li Qing’an noticed his nervousness. This Yan Kai was quite good. From past interactions, he knew the man was meticulous and skilled at spotting issues in details. For example, in the case of Du Bosheng in Yangzhou, Du Bosheng had managed to deduce from chaotic clues that it was he who had taken Prince Qing’s gold—proof that he was no ordinary person.

Yet Li Qing’an also saw that this man was overly obsessed with fame and wealth. Compared to Yan Zhuang, he lacked a sense of loyalty; in other words, he could share prosperity but not hardship. Initially, Li Qing’an hadn’t intended to reuse him, but now he had changed his mind—Yan Kai would be very useful in his plans.

Li Qing’an smiled slightly and waved his hand, saying, “Please sit down, sir!”

He then gave Chang Jin a subtle signal. Understanding the cue, Chang Jin stepped back. Yan Kai sat down anxiously as a maid came in to serve him tea.

“Mr. Yan, please have some tea.”

“Thank you!” Yan Kai nervously picked up the teacup and took a slow sip.

Li Qing’an smiled and said, “Last time, you told me that the mastermind behind the assassination in Weishi County was Prince Di. I asked you to go back and investigate further—have there been any developments?”

Yan Kai quickly replied, “I talked to Luo Xiancheng again yesterday about this matter and learned some more details. May I ask what specific information you’re interested in?”

“I want evidence!” Li Qing’an said. “I want to know if there’s any proof that the Two Monsters of Jinzhou were taken out of prison by Prince Di’s men.”

Yan Kai knew this was a test question set by Li Qing’an, and he had put in real effort on it. He quickly stood up and said, “To report to the governor, back then, Han Baiyan, an aide of Prince Di, went to the prison to bring someone out and left behind a receipt with his handwriting. By comparing it with his current handwriting, we should be able to determine the truth.”
“What about that note? Have you found it?”
Yan Kai replied with some regret, “After Prince Di had those two criminals from Jinzhou killed to silence them, he sent people to destroy all records related to them in Wannian County prison. That’s why Luo Xiancheng said there were no such records left there.”
“Then where could they still be?” Li Qing’an sensed a hint of possibility in his tone.
“To report to the governor, there might still be some in Chang’an County!”
“Chang’an County?”
“Yes! Luo Xiancheng said that those two criminals from Jinzhou also committed crimes in Chang’an County. Not long after Han Baiyan bought them, the Chang’an County authorities also came to interrogate them over another case. Since the criminals were already dead, Chang’an County borrowed their records. When they returned them, some of the materials were missing. Luo Xiancheng remembered clearly that he personally put Han Baiyan’s receipt for bringing out the prisoners into the files, as it was evidence. But when Chang’an County returned them, the receipt was gone. So he deduces that the receipt must still be in Chang’an County.”
“I see!”
Li Qing’an walked a few steps with his hands behind his back. Suddenly, he smiled and said, “Does Prince Qing know about this?”
Yan Kai shook his head and replied, “I’ve only told the young prince about this. Since there’s no evidence, I haven’t informed Prince Qing yet.”
Li Qing’an walked to the door and looked at a peach tree in the courtyard, which was already covered with buds, full of vitality. He turned to look at Yan Kai and said with a slight smile, “Would you be willing to work for me?”
Yan Kai was overjoyed—Li Qing’an had finally agreed! He quickly stepped forward and bowed deeply, “I am willing to serve the governor!”
“Please, no need for formalities. Sit down! Please, sit!”
The two sat down again, and their relationship immediately became much closer. Li Qing’an stopped hiding things from him and said, “I heard today that the emperor plans to send Prince Di to Anxi to take charge there. But I don’t like this man. I want to replace him with another prince. Can you guess who it might be?”
Yan Kai’s mind raced, and he blurted out, “Prince Qing!”
“Smart!” Li Qing’an clapped his hands gently and smiled. “You’re indeed clever. If a prince must be sent to Anxi, then Prince Qing is my best choice. So I hope you’ll continue to stay by Prince Qing’s side. Do you understand?”

Only then did Yan Kai realize that Li Qingan wanted him to stay by the Prince of Qing as an insider, so as not to fear the Prince of Qing in Anxi. What a clever strategy!
“But how will you persuade the emperor to replace him?”
“Don’t worry about that. We’ll take it step by step!”
Li Qingan leaned closer and whispered, “The first step is to make the Prince of Qing believe that the real culprit behind my assassination back then was the Prince of Di, who framed him, causing him to lose hope of entering the Eastern Palace. As for that piece of paper evidence you mentioned, I’ll get it for you.”
……
Ever since he betrayed Yang Guozhong by secretly sending a letter to Xing Xu, Cui Guangyuan, the magistrate of Chang’an County, had been living in constant anxiety. Although his wife advised him to value loyalty over fame and fortune, now that it came to this, Cui Guangyuan found it hard to give up his official position.
The magistrate of Chang’an County was a sixth-rank official, and it had taken him many years to achieve this position. How could he not feel heartbroken if he lost it? Though he regretted nothing for helping Xing Xu, he was also worried about being retaliated against. His mind was filled with contradictions. His only hope was that Yang Guozhong hadn’t discovered that he had sent the letter.
For two full days, Cui Guangyuan remained restless. But this morning, his greatest fear came true—he learned that he had been added to Yang Guozhong’s blacklist. It was an open secret in Chang’an’s official circles that Yang Guozhong, as Minister of Personnel, kept both a red and a black list. Anyone he disapproved of, offended him, or wasn’t part of his faction would end up on his blacklist. Conversely, those who flattered him well and obeyed him obediently were put on the red list. Then, in April of the following year, decisions on promotions and demotions would be made based on these two lists.
Cui Guangyuan was both part of Yang’s faction and an old friend of his. Logically, he should have been on the red list, but since yesterday he had been added to the blacklist, Cui Guangyuan knew for sure that Yang Guozhong must have discovered him.
Cui Guangyuan was extremely depressed. He had originally planned to hold a court hearing today, but now he didn’t have the mood either. He locked himself in his office and sat there in a daze for two hours, his mind blank with worry about his future. In fact, he still had one option: to seek refuge with Wang Gong. After all, helping Xing Xu was ultimately helping Wang Gong, right? But where was Xing Xu now? Would he even show up?
Cui Guangyuan let out a long sigh. Finally, he came to a realization—since he had already done it, there was no point in regretting.
At that moment, a court official rushed in from outside and reported, “Magistrate Cui, General Li, the military governor of Anxi, has arrived.”
Cui Guangyuan was stunned. “Who?”
“Li Qingan!”
Cui Guangyuan exclaimed, “Ah!” and quickly said, “Invite him in right away! No! I’ll go greet him myself!”

…