Chapter 560: Visiting the Cui Family

The bloodshed at Baoyin Temple quickly reached the authorities. Xu Yiming, the new county magistrate of Chang’an County, heard that the victims were among the dozen or so famous outlaws in the county, yet the murderers were two women, reportedly possibly relatives of Prince Zhao, Li Qing’an. This scared Xu Yiming, who rushed to Chongde Fang with over a hundred officials.

By then, Chongde Fang had already been taken control of by the Qianniu Wei troops. Thousands of soldiers from all directions arrived, sealing off the entrance. Nan Jiyun personally led the search, going house by house to find those outlaws.

Xu Yiming then realized the rumors were true—the people the outlaws had harassed were indeed Li Qing’an’s relatives; otherwise, there would have been no such massive response. He felt both regret and anger. In fact, many people had already complained about those outlaws, especially earlier that year when they were suspected of setting fire to the Kitchen God Hall at Baoyin Temple. Since two of them were relatives of a county official, and no one died, the matter was dropped. It was their indulgence that ultimately led to today’s disaster. Xu Yiming was filled with extreme remorse, fearing this could ruin his career completely.

He returned to Chongde Fang with his men, but the gates were closed, allowing no one in or out. The guards had been replaced by Qianniu Wei soldiers, who ignored Xu Yiming’s calls no matter how loudly he shouted.

At that moment, one of the patrol leaders finally realized what was going on. He whispered to Xu Yiming, “County Magistrate Xu, what should we do?”

Xu Yiming was stunned. Yes! What should he do? Did he still want to capture the murderers? He was about to order a retreat when he thought again—if he ignored the matter, and the government or Li Qing’an investigated later, he would be accused of dereliction of duty.

Xu Yiming was in a dilemma. Just then, Nan Jiyun arrived at the gate and said loudly, “County Magistrate Xu, let us from the Qianniu Wei handle this. You can go back.”

Xu Yiming pondered for a moment. It would be best if the Qianniu Wei took over. He could then report to the government that their intervention prevented him from exercising his authority, and they wouldn’t blame him. Everyone knew the Qianniu Wei were the real rulers of Chang’an and Wannian counties. With that thought, he was about to speak when suddenly, the sound of hurried horse hooves came from behind, followed by shouts, “Open the gates! The great general is here!”

Xu Yiming quickly stepped aside, and the gates opened. Hundreds of cavalry rode in, protecting a carriage adorned with a purple flag—Li Qing’an had arrived.

Li Qing’an had just received word that Gao Wu and Mingzhu had encountered trouble at Baoneng Temple, nearly being insulted by thugs. He flew into a rage and rushed to Chongde Fang personally. The carriage sped forward before suddenly stopping in front of Xu Yiming with a clatter. Li Qing’an lifted the curtain and asked coldly, “County Magistrate Xu, are you here to handle the case?”

At that moment, Li Qing’an was extremely dissatisfied with the local authorities, who had failed to stop these ruffians from bullying women for so long. Hearing Li Qing’an’s cold tone, Xu Yiming panicked and quickly stepped forward, bowing deeply. “I heard that some rogue heroes are causing trouble, so I came here to arrest them!”

Li Qing’an nodded, his expression slightly softening. “I’ve heard these tyrants have been causing harm for days now. Your local authorities should investigate thoroughly and deal severely with any other crimes they’ve committed!”

“I understand. I’ll start the investigation right away.”

“Good! You may go in now.”

Li Qing’an lowered the curtain, and the carriage accelerated, heading straight for Baoneng Temple…

Inside Baoneng Temple, Gao Wu and Mingzhu were placed in guest rooms to rest. Mingzhu comforted Gao Wu, “Sis Wu, everything will be fine. Since the Thousand Ox Guard controls Chongde Fang, you’re safe. Maybe those scumbags will even be held accountable.”

At that moment, Gao Wu’s anger subsided a bit. Having killed five people, she felt a hint of regret. Though those villains were detestable, they didn’t deserve death. Yet she had killed five of them—how would their wives and children suffer?

Gao Wu kept her head down, silent, though she secretly regretted her actions. But since the killings had already happened, there was nothing she could do.

Suddenly, noisy footsteps came from outside. The abbot of Baoneng Temple’s voice was heard, “Your Highness, these rogue heroes have been causing harm for years. Countless honest women have been ruined by them. Their deaths are hardly a loss. As the Buddha said, eliminating evil is promoting good. All the monks in our temple are willing to chant prayers for Miss Gao for a month to atone for her killings.”

“Then I thank the monks of your temple. I will surely give generous donations to your temple.”

It was Li Qing’an’s voice. Mingzhu and Gao Wu immediately stood up. The door opened, and a large group entered—monks and soldiers. At the head was Li Qing’an. He entered the room and asked them, “Are you alright?”

Mingzhu, quick-witted, stepped forward eagerly and chattered like a sparrow, “If not for Sis Wu fighting bravely, we would have died here today!”

Li Qing’an smiled at Gao Wu and gave her a thumbs up in praise. “Fighting off fifteen men alone—truly worthy of being called a female general.”

Gao Wu’s face turned red as she lowered her head and said, “I was in a hurry at the time and couldn’t think of anything else. Looking back now, I’m still a bit scared. I’m not as brave as you said.”
Li Qing’an laughed heartily and turned to the abbot, saying, “Please wait outside for a moment, Master!”
The abbot was most afraid that Gao Wu would slander him behind his back, but he had no choice. He gave Gao Wu a worried glance before stepping back. Li Qing’an gave his bodyguard a signal, and the bodyguard immediately closed the door. Only then did he ask the two women, “Why don’t you have guards?”
Mingzhu blinked, not knowing how to answer. Did she also qualify to bring guards? Gao Wu, however, said in a low voice, “My elder sister originally wanted to send two people to follow me, but I refused.”
“Why?”
Before Gao Wu could speak, Mingzhu rushed to say, “Sis Wu is just staying at your mansion temporarily; she’s not part of your family. It’s inappropriate for her to bring your personal guards. Besides, I’ve never brought guards when I go out. Sis Wu is the same—she’s always been used to going alone. What need does she have for guards?”
“Is that the reason?” Li Qing’an asked, staring at Gao Wu.
Gao Wu nodded silently. “Mingzhu is right. I indeed don’t qualify to bring your guards. Moreover, if I did, the news reaching Chang’an would harm my father. Qilang, I’m willing to take responsibility for this incident.”
“What responsibility do you want to take?”
Li Qing’an sneered and said, “Those local tyrants are utterly guilty and deserve death. I’ve ordered continued searches for the others who escaped. I’ll punish each one severely!”
Gao Wu sighed and said, “Though they are guilty, they don’t deserve death. I hope Qilang will handle this fairly.”
“I know. I’ll make their crimes public one by one.”
At that, Li Qing’an asked again, “I heard that you met someone you know. Who was it?”
“It was Cui Yuan, the Right Prime Minister of Chengdu, and his son. They left the temple not long ago.”
“Cui Yuan?” Li Qing’an was stunned. Had he come to Chang’an? How did he not know at all? He quickly asked, “Where are they staying?”
“I don’t know that. But Qilang can ask the abbot. They seem to be quite familiar. Maybe the abbot knows where they live.”
Anxiously, Li Qing’an opened the door to go ask the abbot, but after taking a few steps, he turned back and said, “My carriage is waiting at the door. You two go back first. Next time you go out, be sure to bring two people, or at least someone to send messages.”
Gao Wu bowed and said, “Thank you, Qilang. Then we’ll go back first.”
“Mm, go ahead!”

“Brother-in-law, last time I went to Anxi to deliver the message, it seems the compensation you gave me wasn’t enough… Sigh! Sister Wu, let me finish speaking.” Before Mingzhu could finish, Gao Wu pulled her away. Li Qing’an thought about Cui Yuan’s situation and went out to ask the abbot, “May I ask, abbot, do you know where Cui Yuan lives?” “Well…” The abbot hesitated for a moment before saying, “Their family lives in Anye Fang next door.” … Cui Yuan no longer had a residence in Chang’an, so the family was staying at the home of her cousin Cui Yu. Cui Yu had once been the governor of Longzhou and later transferred to the court as an imperial censor; he was now the head of the Taichang Temple and one of the highest-ranking officials in the Cui family, second only to Cui Huan. That day, Cui Yu wasn’t at court either; he had taken sick leave and was resting at home. At that moment, he was discussing what had happened at Baoyin Temple with Cui Yuan. They weren’t concerned about Gao Wu killing people; what concerned them was the relationship between Gao Wu and Li Qing’an. Both Cui Yuan and Cui Yu were experienced politicians. Especially Cui Yuan—Gao Wu had almost become his daughter-in-law, but she refused outright. Cui Yuan was puzzled too. Given Gao Wu’s age, it would be difficult for her to remarry. Marrying her younger son would be a downgrade in terms of social status, and since her own son liked her very much, she still refused to marry him, even at the risk of offending her father. If she wanted to marry into the royal family as a concubine, when Li Longji planned to marry her to a prince, she ran away. This had left Cui Yuan puzzled until now, when he finally understood—Gao Wu liked Li Qing’an. No wonder! Li Qing’an had once been a general under Gao Xianzhi, so it was only natural for Gao Wu to like him. If Gao Wu really married Li Qing’an, the balance of power in Southern Tang would become delicate, with Gao Xianzhi being the key factor. Cui Yuan sighed and said, “If Gao Xianzhi sides with Li Qing’an, at least half of Southern Tang’s army will be taken away by Li Qing’an. Although Li Heng wants to replace Gao Xianzhi with his son to seize his military power, it’s actually very difficult. Gao Xianzhi has extremely high prestige among the troops. Even without key generals like Xi Yuanqing, as long as he gives an order, more than half of the officers will turn to him.” “Then can we kill him?” Cui Yu asked after taking a sip of hot tea. “If Li Heng finds out that Gao Wu married Li Qing’an, he definitely won’t tolerate Gao Xianzhi anymore. He’ll trick him into Chengdu and kill him. What do you think?” Cui Yuan shook his head. “It’s not that simple to kill him. If Gao Xianzhi is killed, the army will rebel. If it were possible to kill him, Li Heng would have done it long ago. It’s like fearing the weapon you’re using to hit the rat!”

Both of them fell silent. At that moment, Cui Yu sighed and said, “Gao Wu married Li Qingan, and Pei Wan’er will soon marry him as well. Everyone wants to attach themselves to this powerful Li Qingan. Yesterday, I even talked to my elder brother about whether we should give his daughter to him!”
“Why does the Cui family want to enter into such a marriage?”
Cui Yuan replied unhappily. He had always disliked political marriages, especially those involving the Pei family, which he despised even more. But seeing Cui Yu looking worried, he asked, “What, do we really have to form an alliance?”
Cui Yu shook his head. “Whether we form an alliance or not isn’t important. The key is that the Pei family is growing very strong now. Especially since Pei Zunqing became the Right Prime Minister—you know that guy; he’s a typical member of an old aristocratic family who recklessly expands the Pei family’s power. I counted yesterday, and the Pei family’s power was originally just slightly less than ours. But after Pei Zunqing’s expansion, they’ve now surpassed us. This has only been two months. What if he remains Right Prime Minister for a year? By then, our Cui family will surely have no place left to stand. The entire court and local areas will be under the control of the Pei family. Sigh!”
Cui Yu let out a deep sigh, but Cui Yuan laughed and said, “I think you’re overreacting.”
“Why?” Cui Yu was surprised.
Cui Yuan stroked his beard and smiled. “Do you think Li Qingan is a fool? Would he let the Pei family grow so powerful? Let me tell you, that’s absolutely impossible. He married Pei Wan’er originally to suppress the Du Gu family. The Du Gu family is weak and easy to control. But the Pei family is different. If we indulge them, it will bring endless disasters in the future, leading to a situation like ‘the king and the horses sharing the world.’ That’s definitely not something Li Qingan wants to see. So I dare say he’ll soon support the opponents of the Pei family.”
Just as Cui Yuan finished speaking, someone rushed in from outside and reported urgently, “Master, Prince Zhao has arrived and wants to see you!”
Cui Yu was shocked and quickly said to Cui Yuan, “Elder brother, hide quickly.”
But Cui Yuan shook his head. He knew full well that Li Qingan must already know he was here—actually, he had come to visit him. “Younger brother, this might be the opportunity I mentioned for the Cui family. Go and greet him! I’ll meet him with you.”
……
On the steps outside the mansion, Li Qingan stood with his hands behind his back, observing Cui Yu’s large residence from outside. It covered over fifty acres, with tall courtyard walls, black tiles, and white walls, giving it a somewhat Ming and Qing dynasty style.
At that moment, the mansion door opened, and Cui Yu stepped forward quickly, bowing and saying, “I’m sorry for making Prince Zhao wait so long. I deserve death.”

Li Qing’an also smiled and returned the greeting, saying, “What crime has Envoy Cui committed? It’s my fault for showing up uninvited.”
“Oh! Your Highness, please don’t be polite. Come in at once.”
Li Qing’an didn’t hesitate any longer and walked straight into Cui’s mansion with his hands behind his back.
“I heard Envoy Cui fell ill. Is he feeling any better now?”
“It’s just an old ailment. He coughs and has shortness of breath every autumn, but it gets better after a day of rest.”
“Hmm! Then I’ll just chat casually with you without disturbing your rest.”
“No! No! Please, Your Highness.”
The two went to the study. Li Qing’an followed Cui Yu inside, only to see Cui Yuan bowing deeply to him, “Worthy sinner Cui Yuan pays his respects to Prince Zhao!”
Li Qing’an’s eyes narrowed as well. He had come to Cui’s family precisely to meet this person.