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The Xie Family
In the quiet room of the main courtyard, the Xie father and son were playing Go. All the servants had retreated.
Xie Mingtang and Xie Zhan sat facing each other, one holding white pieces, the other black. The only sound in the entire quiet room was the sound of the pieces being placed.
After a long time, Xie Mingtang placed a white piece and asked his handsome eldest son, “What do you think of the events in court today?”
Xie Zhan held a black piece, looking at the three suitable positions on the board, but remained silent. He stared at the board, as if troubled by something.
Xie Mingtang didn’t urge him, patiently waiting.
All the images in Xie Zhan’s mind finally settled on the scene of Lu Songli slapping the Zhao family’s messenger in the face that day. He finally decided where to place his piece. He was still a little unsure as he placed it, but as the piece got closer to the board, the force with which he placed it became more and more resolute.
After placing the piece, Xie Zhan said, “The Zhao family has been sailing smoothly for too long and has become too careless about their enemies.”
Xie Mingtang nodded. Indeed, in the past, Lu Desheng, this bigmouth, had been scolding the heavens and the earth, but he had never touched anyone from the Zhao family, or the Xie family for that matter. This was the first time Zhao Wenkuan had faced Lu Desheng’s attack head-on, and it was a complete defeat.
“The Zhao family’s carelessness is one thing, but isn’t Lu Desheng too dangerous?”
Logically, the stronger the power of their in-laws, the happier they would be, not worried. Xie Mingtang’s words were actually a probe, but also a concern. What if one day the Lu Family stood against the Xie family? How would the Xie family deal with such an uncontrollable person? As the saying goes, there are no eternal enemies, and there are no eternal friends.
In the past, when faced with similar questions from his father, Xie Zhan usually remained silent. He felt there was no need to discuss it. Because of Lu Songli’s original temperament, the possibility of the Lu Family backing out of the marriage was very low. If so, the Lu Family would be his in-laws, and he would not allow the Lu Family and the Xie family to turn against each other.
Xie Mingtang was used to his eldest son’s silence. In the last few years before his death, his old father often told him that Xie Zhan, his grandson, was the most like him among all his descendants. He possessed many excellent qualities: he was perceptive, thoughtful, and meticulous, always planning before acting. He was truly a qilin, a mythical creature symbolizing great talent of the Xie family. He was a scholar with vast knowledge and a wide range of learning; it was only a matter of time before he entered the cabinet and became a high-ranking official. With Xie Zhan, the Xie family would be worry-free for at least three generations. He had said this not only in front of him but also to the several elders who were currently in charge of the Xie family. Because of this statement, the family had spared no effort in cultivating Xie Zhan.
Such a good person, yet he was burdened with such a marriage. Many in the clan were unhappy about it. But because it was his father who had arranged the marriage, they didn’t say anything.
As one of the heads of the family, Xie Mingtang knew more and was even more dissatisfied with this marriage. His son was so outstanding; he hoped his son would also have an outstanding son. He knew that when his father arranged this marriage for his son with the Lu Family, there were also compelling reasons, and he might not have been truly satisfied with the Lu Family.
Actually, the Xie family had plenty of ways to force the Lu Family to break off the engagement. But after Xie Zhan, his eldest son, noticed this, he repeatedly stopped him and warned him to restrain the clan from taking action against the Lu Family. He said that Lu Desheng was very cunning. Every bird leaves its trace. As long as they acted, there was no guarantee that it wouldn’t be investigated. He took those words to heart and had acted accordingly all these years.
Now that the Zhao family had intervened, it gave the Xie family another option, and they could do it without damaging their reputation. When the Zhao family approached him, he had been tempted, but his son remained unmoved.
Just when Xie Mingtang thought that this time would be no different from the past and that he wouldn’t be able to get his son to speak, Xie Zhan finally spoke. “Father, you don’t need to worry too much. Lu Desheng is just a knife in the hands of the Emperor. The reason why Lu Desheng’s impeachment was so effective this time is that the Emperor had already been dissatisfied with the Zhao family for a long time, and he just used Lu Desheng’s hand to take advantage of the situation.”
His son’s change in attitude, or rather, his shift, made Xie Mingtang overjoyed. He knew very well what it meant, but it was followed by deep worry. “Lu Desheng is a bit too sharp, like a raging fire.”
He couldn’t help but worry about this. Lu Desheng was like a raging fire, and he was uncontrollable. He was afraid that one day, this fire would burn the Xie family. Compared to the Zhao family, the Xie family was probably not much cleaner. If Lu Desheng turned his guns on the Xie family, it would be a disaster.
Xie Zhan shook his head and said, “Lu Desheng is nothing to fear. The Lu Family is like a rootless duckweed. It seems powerful, but it only plays an extraordinary role in a specific position. It’s actually not difficult to get rid of him.”
Xie Mingtang asked, “How? What method?”
Xie Zhan casually uttered two words, “Kill with kindness!”
“Explain in detail.” Xie Mingtang gestured for him to continue. Didn’t his son just say that Lu Desheng was the Emperor’s knife? Now they wanted to break his knife. Would the Emperor be pleased?
Seeing his father like this, Xie Zhan furrowed his brow slightly. It seemed that Lu Desheng had really put a lot of pressure on his father. This wouldn’t do.
“Father, have you analyzed the reasons why Lu Desheng has become so powerful? It’s not difficult to get rid of him if you target the reason.”
“Lu Desheng’s power lies in his mouth!” Xie Mingtang said dismissively, but he couldn’t help but admit that Lu Desheng was skilled at impeaching people.
“That’s just because his knife is sharp and useful. Those are just superficial reasons. Another reason is that the Emperor needs a knife, a knife that is loyal only to him.”
Xie Mingtang knew his son was right. If the Emperor didn’t need him, then even if the knife was sharper, the Emperor wouldn’t use it.
“Father, there are many people in the court who hate Lu Desheng, right?”
“Many. Even if they don’t hate him, they don’t like him. If the Emperor didn’t protect him, he wouldn’t be able to stand a foot in the court.”
“Those people must have been belittling him and suppressing him in front of the Emperor, right? But no matter what those people said, the Emperor has been protecting him, right?”
“Exactly!”
Xie Zhan pointed out, “So, they’ve been trying to deal with Lu Desheng in the wrong way from the beginning.”
People have a rebellious psychology. So many officials in the court wanted to move against Lu Desheng. For the Emperor, it’s like, “My man, the more you oppose him, the more I will protect him. I don’t believe I can’t protect one of my subjects.”
If Lu Songli were there, she would also agree with his point of view. The situation between her father and the Emperor was that the more external pressure the court officials put on them, the more they would stick together and resist.
“The wrong way?”
“Right now, Lu Desheng is one with the Emperor. If you deal with him, you are dealing with the Emperor.”
Xie Mingtang’s brow relaxed. “Son, I understand a little now.” He suddenly realized. No wonder they felt a headache when dealing with Lu Desheng.
“So, the first step in dealing with Lu Desheng is to separate him from the Emperor, to remove his role as the ‘knife.’ The second step is to not disregard the Emperor’s needs, to ensure that the Emperor has a knife to use. Once the Emperor adapts to the new ‘knife,’ dealing with Lu Desheng will be as easy as turning over your hand.” Xie Zhan gently placed the final piece and ended the game.
“Great strategy!” Xie Mingtang exclaimed, clapping his hands in amazement.
He hadn’t expected the problem that had troubled him for so long to be solved in just a few words by his eldest son. Looking at his eldest son sitting across from him, calm and sharp, he couldn’t help but feel proud. He was truly the son he had placed high hopes on.
If Lu Songli and Xie Zhan were to hear each other’s conversations with their fathers at this moment, they would surely be surprised and wary of each other.
Their analysis of Imperial Censor Lu was equally incisive, and their methods of dealing with him were similar, almost hitting him where it hurt the most. Lu Songli directly simplified the specific steps, while Xie Zhan, with the intention of guiding and instructing, explained it more profoundly to his father.