Chapter 127: Taking Charge

Qin Heng and his brothers, relying on their youth and strength, handed over half of the straw to Qin Han and Qin Yu, leaving the other half for themselves.

Madam Qin felt sorry for her sons, but she didn’t plan to take anything for herself, willing to endure the hardship.

“Mother, don’t worry, someone should be bringing things later.” Lu Songli said as she deftly weaved a grass mat. She didn’t know how the other relatives of the Qin family were handling the situation, but she was certain that the Lu family would send something in.

“Is that so? That’s good.”

The Qin family members fell silent. Currently, the relatives of the Qin family in Chang’an City included Madam Qin’s maternal family, the Gu family, Qin Heng’s original wife’s Ding family, and Nie Yunniang’s family in Suzhou. Qin Yan and Qin Ming’s wives were also not from Chang’an City, and Qin Wu’s wife had remarried a year after his death. Some other relatives were more distant.

Lu Songli quickly made a rough grass mat for Nie Yunniang to lean on, so she wouldn’t have to be close to the damp and cold wall.

“Thank you, Sixth Sister.” Nie Yun smiled gratefully. Since the Qin family was raided, Lu Songli had always taken care of her and her mother-in-law.

“No need to thank me.” Lu Songli began weaving a second mat.

Qin Jia squatted beside her, handing her straw. The three Qin brothers also followed her lead and started weaving grass mats.

Imperial Palace

At noon, Lu Desheng came out of the palace. His carriage was stopped by people from the Fourth Prince as soon as it left the palace gates.

The Fourth Prince stopped him, not for any other reason, but to inquire about the matter of the imperial edict. They first tried to persuade him emotionally and logically, emphasizing the importance of the dynasty’s inheritance and urging him to consider the country’s well-being. They even mentioned Emperor  Kang Cheng, saying how much he trusted Lu Desheng and asked him to prioritize the overall situation and not disappoint the late Emperor’s trust.

Lu Desheng nodded along, but in his heart, he thought, “What does the chaos of the Da Li Dynasty have to do with me? When you eliminated the Crown Prince, you weren’t worried about the stability of the country. What’s the matter? When it wasn’t your bowl that was broken, you didn’t care, but now that the bowl is yours, you suddenly care?”

Seeing that he was not receptive, the Fourth Prince could only try to entice him with benefits, hinting that if Lu Desheng had any conditions, he could fulfill them.

Lu Desheng did not respond, but with a righteous expression, he said, “Fourth Prince, your words have stirred my blood. If I really had the imperial edict on me now, I would eagerly present it to you. Unfortunately, I don’t.”

He acted as if he had no choice, and the Fourth Prince looked at him silently.

“Fourth Prince, shall I go first? I still have to attend the mourning for the late Emperor in the afternoon…” Lu Desheng asked softly.

The Fourth Prince had no choice but to let him go.

Watching Lu Desheng’s carriage disappear into the distance, the Fourth Prince felt a headache. If this issue was not resolved properly, it would leave many potential problems. The imperial examination had indeed left him a big problem. If Lu Desheng was not only eight years younger than the late Emperor, he would suspect that he was the late Emperor’s lost son outside the palace. The late Emperor had treated him so well, even better than his own son!

When Lu Desheng returned home, he heard that all the Qin family members had been imprisoned and would be exiled. His hand holding the hot water trembled, as his daughter had foreseen this.

“Later, you go to the prison to see the Qin family. Remember to bring them some supplies. As for the funeral arrangements for the Qin family, you and your eldest son and daughter-in-law will help manage it. As for the palace, I still need to mourn for the late Emperor. You will have to take care of these matters for me.”

Madam Jiang agreed to everything.

Lu Desheng thought for a moment and found no oversight. He nodded silently, following his daughter’s plan of action, feeling confident that there would be no issues.

Lu Songli was right, not long after, someone came to see them.

The first to arrive was the Lu family, with Madam Jiang bringing her eldest son. After arranging with the guards, they successfully brought in the necessary items.

Madam Jiang said as she took things, “We can’t bring too many good things in, otherwise it will attract too much attention, and the prison guards won’t allow it.”

Two old mats, over twenty boiled eggs, around ten steamed buns and buns, a bowl of chicken soup, and even some clean clothes prepared for Nie Yunniang, all packed in a full basket.

The chicken soup was prepared considering that the daughter is weak, Madam Qin is also not in good health, and with Madam Qin’s daughter-in-law, who is a new mother, she thought she must bring a bowl of it no matter what.

“In-law, this is already very good.” Madam Qin was very grateful. They say true feelings are revealed in times of adversity, and they are benefiting from the presence of Little Sixth Daughter-in-law.

Lu Songli took the initiative to divide the food. The children were already starving, so after receiving permission, they started eating.

They divided the chicken soup among themselves, as all three of them were not in good health, so there was no need to refuse each other. After informing the others, Lu Songli drank one-third of the soup, then handed it to Madam Qin, who took a few sips before giving the rest to Nie Yunniang.

The three Qin brothers wanted to eat less and leave the food for them.

Lu Songli, however, felt that leaving two steamed buns for emergencies would suffice, and what is eaten is what belongs to oneself.

“Your eldest sister-in-law and Mingzhi are mourning at the Qin Residence. Wu Chunyu is still taking inventory of the Qin family’s assets, so the Qin Residence is sealed off. No matter what we say, Wu Chunyu only allocated a remote courtyard for us to mourn, out of respect for General Lin and Deputy General Sheng. The assets in the remote courtyard have naturally been cleared out.”

Madam Jiang chattered on about the news from outside.

The Qin family members listened silently.

Just then, the guard came in and told them that the visiting time was almost up, so if they had anything to say, they should hurry.

After thinking for a moment, Madam Jiang felt that she had disclosed everything she needed to, so she quickly left after telling her daughter.

After Madam Jiang left, people from the Gu family arrived, bringing some food and a thick coat, and immediately left after delivering the items.

Madam Qin’s parents had passed away long ago, and now her older brother and sister-in-law were in charge, so their relationship had naturally become distant. Moreover, her brother and sister-in-law were timid and afraid of being implicated by the Qin family. Madam Qin was already satisfied that they came to see her at this time.

The Ding family also sent people, bringing two thick hats, two small mats, and some food suitable for children. It was obvious that they were all for the sake of the two children.

The Hu family also sent someone over. The second daughter of the Hu family was the intended stepmother that Qin Heng planned to marry. She came empty-handed to inform them of the cancellation of the engagement.

Qin Heng didn’t want to burden the other party, so he didn’t say much and agreed to the cancellation.

Lu Songli estimated that the things brought by these waves of people would just be enough to get them through the cold winter night. After consulting with Madam Qin and Nie Yunniang, she took charge of dividing the items.

The sudden turn of events, along with the attitudes of these relatives, made Madam Qin somewhat emotional.

Madam Qin held Lu Songli’s hand and whispered, “A Li, you are a good child. Although you have married Sheng, you have not consummated the marriage. If you have the opportunity to leave here, then please do so. I will have Sheng write you a divorce letter. I believe that once you leave the Qin family, you will also find a good place to settle down and won’t have to suffer with us.”

Madam Qin’s voice was very low, but the three Qin brothers were all martial artists, sensitive to the slightest details, naturally hearing every word she said.

Qin Sheng clenched his fists, held his breath, and waited for Lu Songli’s response.

Without much thought, Lu Songli replied, “Mother, there’s no need to say such things. I won’t leave.”

She and her father had analyzed that after Emperor  Kang Cheng’s death, the situation for the Lu family wouldn’t be much better.

So many officials were ordered by Emperor  Kang Cheng to be buried with him, even the imperial uncle couldn’t escape, yet her father survived, which was already very conspicuous. The Empress Dowager had lost her brother, and all her anger would be directed at her father. Plus, a new emperor who didn’t have any good feelings for their Lu family, tsk tsk, who could know how that would feel.

Actually, her father had already packed his bags and prepared to resign and flee. He knew too well what it meant to be favored and not favored. When favored, you could do whatever you wanted, and nothing would happen. But when not favored, you would be constantly in trouble, and you might be imprisoned or even lose your head at any moment.

The next day, they ate the cold prison meal, which had even solidified some oil chunks, and it tasted bland. Some of the food brought by the relatives who had visited them yesterday was still left, and they gave it to the children and the women. The three Qin brothers ate the genuine prison meal, which, besides being tasteless, looked and tasted like pig food. This was because the prison guards, considering that the Qin family had earned them a lot of extra money yesterday, had intentionally chosen the better ones to deliver.

Qin Heng said, “We must leave Chang’an as soon as possible and go to the place of exile.” They couldn’t stay in this prison forever, it didn’t make sense. Moreover, he felt that it was better to leave now, when the court was in turmoil. Otherwise, once the new emperor ascended the throne smoothly, he would have his hands free and it would be even more disadvantageous for the Qin family.

The problem now was that the wealth confiscated from their Qin Residence didn’t match the accounts, and Wu Chunyu, fearing responsibility, probably wouldn’t let them leave Chang’an easily.

Lu Songli asked softly, “Big Brother, is that so?” She was prepared.

Qin Heng nodded slightly.

Just right, she had made corresponding preparations. Lu Songli also felt that this was the perfect time to leave.

Although it was freezing outside and the road to exile was not easy to travel, if they had other preparations, it would definitely be better than staying in the prison and staying in Chang’an.

Once they left Chang’an, they would be free as birds and fish in the sea.

Staying in Chang’an, they would only be at the mercy of others.

Now that Emperor  Kang Cheng had passed away, the fourth prince who ascended the throne was undisputed. That is, the new emperor and the Empress Dowager, both of whom had no good feelings for them. Even if they used force to fight back, it wouldn’t change the disgust of the upper echelon of the country towards them.

They had soft power, but no hard power had developed.

They had to go out.

Yes, Lu Songli was confident that the fourth prince would eventually ascend the throne legitimately. Even though the fourth prince was facing some obstacles in ascending the throne now because of her father and another person’s will that had not been revealed.

But Lu Songli thought that Emperor  Kang Cheng must have left a backup plan. He allowed her father to take advantage of this to gain some small benefits, but he wouldn’t allow her father to withhold the will and cause chaos. Therefore, their Qin and Lu families must seize the opportunity while the new emperor was still in a state of confusion and successfully leave Chang’an.

“Big Brother, have you made your decision?” Lu Songli confirmed.

“Yes.”

“I’ll take care of it.” Lu Songli said this with a smile, the light in her eyes was bright and warm, as if the matter was a sure thing.

Qin Heng smiled, “Alright, then you try first.” If it didn’t work, he would find another way. As for what that way would be, he already had a clue.