0p0 Chapter 446 Big Oolong
Chapter 446 Big Oolong
Shen Tianjiao was amused by Ruan Yuhu's words. Thinking about it, it made sense. If Ruan Yuhu went out in a big way, it would indeed attract attention.
If it attracts other people's attention, something bad might really happen.
Moreover, the people around Ruan Yuhu are incredibly powerful, even more so than the bodyguards around Shen Tianjiao.
Escorting Ruan Yuhu to Huguo Temple would be no problem at all.
Upon hearing the name Wang Yunzhi, Shen Tianjiao suddenly remembered that she should send someone to inquire about and show concern for this Grand Chancellor Wang.
He played a significant role in successfully subduing Li Zhaohui this time.
It's no easy feat to make someone so devoted give up their obsession and go after their beloved.
With this in mind, Shen Tianjiao made a plan. She would send Chun Chao to the Prime Minister's residence later to visit Prime Minister Wang on her behalf.
“Aunt, I’ve brought Qiongniang back from the Imperial Hospital.”
Ruan Yuhu is currently unaware of what happened to Qiongniang at the Imperial Hospital.
"They've been brought back?"
Ruan Yuhu frowned; she still wanted Qiongniang to stay at the Imperial Hospital a little longer.
The Imperial Medical Academy had imperial physicians to take care of her at any time, and more importantly, there were admirers of Qiong Niang there. Lu Guanning was also a gentle and refined person.
If possible, Ruan Yuhu still hopes that there can be progress between Qiongniang and Lu Guanning.
Having lived a lonely and miserable life herself, she knew what that felt like, so she wanted Qiongniang to have a better life.
Not to mention Qiong Niang, even Shen Tianjiao and Ruan Yuhu wanted her to find someone she could love and protect, someone to spend her life with.
In Ruan Yuhu's view, there was no idea that a woman should remain faithful to her husband for life.
Men can have three wives and four concubines, marrying one after another. If they themselves cannot remain chaste and pure for their wives, why should women be expected to remain chaste for them?
Moreover, Li Rui was no good man either; Shen Tianjiao suffered a lot and endured a lot of hardship with him.
Shen Tianjiao had even less reason to be bound by the identity of an empress, spending her entire life guarding the palace and living a lonely and helpless life.
"Something happened in the Imperial Hospital, and that Lu Guanning is not a good match either."
"He colluded with the people of Southern Chu and imprisoned Qiongniang in the cellar of the Imperial Hospital. Qiongniang almost lost her life."
Shen Tianjiao knew what Ruan Yuhu was thinking, but she had to shatter Ruan Yuhu's illusions and tell her the truth.
"What did you say?"
Ruan Yuhu thought there was something wrong with his ears. How could such a bizarre thing happen right under their noses?
Has the Imperial Medical Academy's defenses become so lax? It seems the medical administrators of the Imperial Medical Academy are truly getting old; it's time to consider replacing them.
"You heard me right, everything I just said is true."
"Lu Guanning colluded with Duan Furong, the princess of the Prince of Ping of Nan Chu, and took advantage of Qiongniang's injury to switch Qiongniang with Duan Furong."
"Their goal is probably to get Duan Furong to replace Qiong Niang and come to my side to harm me."
"But it's all over now, everything has been resolved, and the crisis is over."
"Lu Guanning is currently in the Shenxing Division, while Duan Furong is being held with Duan Yongping."
"We should be able to get their entire plan soon."
"Once this matter is over, send Duan Yongping and Duan Furong to Madam Duan. How they are dealt with will be up to Madam Duan."
Duan Yongping and Duan Furong were nothing more than two pawns being used. Once the pawns were used up, they had no value whatsoever.
They were handed over to Duan Qingning; how he dealt with them was up to Duan Qingning.
"Hmm." Ruan Yuhu nodded and said, "Chaoyun's condition has improved greatly these days, so why don't we send her over this time as well?"
"They are mother and daughter, and they should be allowed to spend more time together to develop their relationship."
Ruan Yuhu looked up at Shen Tianjiao, "Jiaojiao, what are your plans for Duan Qingning and her daughter?"
"They cannot, and will not, stay in Yunli forever."
"Duan Qingning has her own things to do, and Chaoyun also has to face her new identity."
Shen Tianjiao had already made arrangements for Duan Qingning and her daughter.
"Yes, the mother and daughter won't stay in Yunli forever. They have their own things to do, and I also have things I want them to do."
Shen Tianjiao looked up and exchanged a glance with Ruan Yuhu. Both of them understood each other's intentions from their eyes.
"You want to send Duan Qingning and her daughter back to Southern Chu, then support them and let them dismantle the Southern Chu imperial power, so that Southern Chu can establish a new order."
"When you're free to deal with them, you can take care of the easily defeated Southern Chu."
It has to be said that Ruan Yuhu and Shen Tianjiao's tacit understanding is getting better and better. Basically, Ruan Yuhu can guess exactly what Shen Tianjiao is thinking.
"Yes, Auntie is right, that's what I'm planning to do."
“Duan Qingning definitely wants revenge, but in her current state, she doesn’t have the ability to go back to Southern Chu to seek revenge. She doesn’t have that ability, but I can provide her with that opportunity.”
"With her intelligence and ruthlessness, as long as we provide her with help, overthrowing Southern Chu and causing internal strife within Southern Chu is not a problem at all."
“She needs help and outside support, so we will be her help and outside support.”
"This would benefit all of us, so why not do it?"
Shen Tianjiao suggested that sending Duan Qingning back to stir up trouble in Southern Chu and create internal strife would be far more effective than sending troops to directly attack Southern Chu.
Moreover, her elder brother Shen Yiyang is currently in Southern Chu. People in Southern Chu are skilled in using poison, so having her own people around can at least provide some protection and prevent Shen Yiyang from being taken advantage of or threatened by others.
"Yes, that's what I think too."
Shen Tianjiao's idea coincided with Ruan Yuhu's, and Ruan Yuhu also planned to do the same.
The current method is the simplest and most effective. Only when the Southern Chu is in chaos can Shen Tianjiao have more opportunities to take over the Southern Chu.
Duan Qingning is not just a pretty but stupid beauty; her beauty is only the least noteworthy of her many advantages.
Besides being beautiful, she is even more intelligent.
The late emperor was almost tricked by her and died prematurely, unable to live to a ripe old age.
The reason Duan Qingning's plan back then failed was not because she was not smart or lacked strategy, but simply because she was a little unlucky.
With Yun Li assisting her this time, taking down a small territory like Southern Chu will be a piece of cake.
"Now that Chaoyun has recovered, why not send the mother and daughter back to Southern Chu as soon as possible?"
"Although Duan Qingning is smart enough and has the means, it will take time to dismantle the imperial power of Southern Chu and cause them to fight among themselves."
"Moreover, I'm also worried about my elder brother. He's a brave and skilled general on the battlefield, but he's too straightforward. I'm afraid he doesn't have enough shrewdness to deal with those people from Southern Chu."
"I'm even more afraid that he'll suffer a loss and be bullied by those people from Southern Chu."
The longer Chu Qingge merged with the identity of Shen Tianjiao, the deeper her bond with the Shen family became, as if she was originally meant to be Shen Tianjiao.
"You don't need to worry too much. Your older brother still has Bai Yunchi by his side. That kid is very cunning. When dealing with him, you'll mostly be the one who suffers."
Ruan Yuhu recognized Bai Yunchi's ability to cause trouble; that kid was full of tricks, and it was impossible for him to suffer any losses.
"Since we share the same idea, let's take action now."
"They need to prepare a lot of things to go back to Southern Chu, and we also need to carefully select our people."
Even with such a rushed schedule, it will still take more than half a month to set off.
"Okay, let's get started now."
"I'll leave this to you, Aunt. When you return from Huguo Temple, go to Ziyun Manor and bring those two idiots, Duan Yongping and Duan Furong, to have a good talk with Duan Qingning."
Since we're all going to cooperate, it's best to clarify some things in person beforehand to avoid any unnecessary trouble or disputes later.
Shen Tianjiao looked up outside. She knew in her heart that this was the first step she had taken to wage war against the six kingdoms of the Nine Provinces. Once this step was taken, there was no possibility of turning back.
The era that will change Yunli's fate is about to begin.
This time, she will lead Yunli to change the tragic fate of being destroyed and devoured in her previous life, and usher in a new and prosperous dynasty.
"Okay, don't worry, leave this to me."
For Yunli's future, Ruan Yuhu naturally felt it was her duty to do so. Let alone something as trivial as negotiating with Duan Qingning, she would gladly go through fire and water for him.
Moreover, if this matter is handled well, the biggest beneficiary will naturally be Shen Tianjiao.
This is the outcome that Ruan Yuhu would be most pleased to see, so she will definitely do everything in her power to make it happen.
"Jiaojiao, don't overwork yourself. Take care of your health and get more rest."
Looking at Shen Tianjiao's dark circles, Ruan Yuhu knew how tired and exhausted she was.
"Your body is your own; if you overwork yourself, you'll be the one who suffers."
Seeing Shen Tianjiao's appearance, Ruan Yuhu felt extremely distressed.
This girl really doesn't know how to take care of herself; she never takes her own body seriously.
Shen Tianjiao's mental state is worse than that of this old woman.
"Yes, I'll listen to my aunt and go back to sleep for a while."
Although Shen Tianjiao had just woken up, she hadn't slept enough and was still not in good spirits.
"Good, go to sleep. I'll go check on Qiongniang."
Knowing that Qiongniang had encountered such a serious problem, Ruan Yuhu was also very worried and uncomfortable.
Originally, I thought that Qiong Niang's encounter with Lu Guanning was a good match, but I never expected it to be a tragic fate, and a tragic fate that almost killed Qiong Niang.
This is truly a terrible tragedy!
It seems she's really getting old; even she can misjudge people sometimes.
If Lu Guanning were right in front of her right now, she would definitely slap him a few times to vent her anger.
I don't know where Lu Guanning got the audacity to set his sights on Qiongniang and even dare to collude with the people of Southern Chu to murder the current Empress Regent, Shen Tianjiao.
Lu Guo was cautious and meticulous in his actions, always careful in everything he did. How could he have raised such a bold and unworthy grandson?
Not long after Ruan Yuhu left, Ren Dongfang arrived.
"Master, everything has been thoroughly interrogated."
"Well, tell me."
Shen Tianjiao was also curious about what reason Lu Guanning, a physician from the Imperial Hospital, would have for daring to do something so disgusting.
"Lu Guanning is a medical fanatic who loves to study difficult and rare diseases."
"Before the people from Southern Chu came to Yunli, they conducted a detailed investigation. They came specifically for Lu Guanning."
“They know Lu Guanning’s weaknesses, and because Lu Guanning is now in the Imperial Hospital as Physician Wang’s assistant, he has more opportunities to get in touch with you.”
"So they used the medical book written by the legendary physician Wu Haizi of the previous dynasty, now lost, 'The Biographies of Ming Physicians,' as bait to lure Lu Guanning into agreeing to act in this play with them."
When Ren Dongfang received the interrogation results, he didn't know whether to call Lu Guanning crazy or to scold him for being stupid.
For a medical book that doesn't even exist, they would agree to help foreign enemies harm the Empress. It's truly speechless that the Lu family has produced such a descendant.
"He agreed to the Western Rong people's demands just for a medical book?"
When Shen Tianjiao heard Ren Dongfang's words, her face also showed disbelief.
If Lu Guanning was willing to cooperate with the people of Southern Chu for money or beauty, even at the cost of her life, Shen Tianjiao could understand.
But now, being told that Lu Guanning sold himself for a medical book makes Shen Tianjiao doubt her own worth.
The empress of a nation is not even worth as much as a medical book; one doesn't know whether she should cry or laugh.
"Moreover, I have asked Physician Wang, and Lu Guanning is indeed a medical fanatic. He would even risk his life to obtain a medical book."
"We were able to capture him yesterday without alerting anyone because Physician Wang lied to him, saying he had obtained a rare copy of a medical book and invited him over to study it."
Ren Dongfang had initially thought there was some huge conspiracy behind this incident, but it turned out to be a complete misunderstanding. This was the first time he had ever encountered something like this.
Shen Tianjiao shook her head. Now it was certain that Lu Guanning was an absolute idiot.
Arguing too much with a fool would make her, as the empress, seem petty.
“Take Lu Guanning back and hand him over to Lu Guo. Tell Lu Guo everything that happened and make sure he keeps a close eye on Lu Guanning so that he can never leave the Lu family’s house again.”
“From this moment forward, no member of the Lu family shall be allowed to serve as an official in the Imperial Medical Academy.”