Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 353 A Tacit Understanding in a Public Case
"Yan Cheng, that child, is indeed... somewhat wicked!"

Lord Shen paused, then took back some of what he was about to say.

After all, I am an elder, and there are some things that I shouldn't say too much, even if it's behind someone's back.

Even if this is true.

As he spoke, Lord Shen glanced at the lady beside him, but before she could ask a question, he continued, "Lady, do you still remember the tragedy that happened to your elder brother's household ten years ago?"

Lord Shen's expression was somewhat gloomy, as if he was reluctant to speak!
"Tragedy?"

Madam Shen had no recollection of this and couldn't remember it for the time being.

"What tragedy? My family could have..."

"Huh? That's not right!"

At first, Madam Shen was puzzled and couldn't recall the events of that year immediately. However, with Lord Shen's constant eye prompting, she frowned and thought hard. Suddenly, in a moment of inspiration, she remembered the incident.

However, when she remembered that "tragedy," her face turned ashen at the same time.

"My lord...you mean..."

“…Tell me…about that matter…”

Madam Shen suppressed her gasp of surprise, her face showing utter disbelief!
Although she lacked shrewdness, she wasn't stupid. Since Lord Shen spoke in this way, it meant one thing.

In other words, the incident that happened at Li Fang's residence back then was related to Li Yancheng.

"Ok!"

Upon seeing that Madam Shen had remembered what happened back then, Lord Shen's expression became even more serious: "Actually..."

"What happened at your elder brother's residence was not an accident, but a premeditated frame-up!"

Lord Shen, with his hands behind his back, glanced coldly at the west: "And this conspiracy, I happen to know about."

To the west, there was clearly the location of the Li family.

It seems that because of his dislike for his brother-in-law, even at this time, Lord Shen still kept him separate from the Shen family.

Lord Shen's way of addressing Li Fang was truly "cruel" to the extreme!

"My lord, just say what you have to say!"

"Don't be like other people, speaking hesitantly and stammering, making people feel uncomfortable!"

Madam Shen frowned and urged him on with a livid face.

Right now, she has no other thoughts; all she wants to do is find out what really happened back then.

What exactly is hidden in this?
Lord Shen's eyes held a complex expression...

Oh no!
She gave Madam Shen a pitiful look before slowly recounting the incident.

It turns out that a tragic event once occurred in the Li family, or rather, in Li Fang's household—back then, Li Fang had a very remarkable son.

Not only was he handsome and adorable, making him very likable, but his talent and aptitude were also rare, especially his talent in studying, which was unparalleled in the world!

A child who is only five or six years old can have a photographic memory and can recite poems on the spot. In other words, this child is a top-notch student and a guarantee of the Li family's future wealth and prosperity.

At that time, the old master of the Li family was still alive. It was because of the old master that the child was able to receive the best upbringing. Although he was born out of wedlock, he was able to receive the same treatment as the direct descendants of the Li family.

However, the Li family's "prodigy," on whom all their hopes were pinned, did not grow up smoothly.

The reason was that he died prematurely due to an "accident".

but!

Lord Shen, however, knew that the child's death was not an accident, but rather...

He was murdered!

And this person was none other than his own elder brother—Li Yancheng!
"No...impossible!"

"Yan Cheng... Yan Cheng couldn't possibly be that kind of person!"

"He...he...wouldn't do such a thing!"

"..."

When Madam Shen heard this news clearly from Lord Shen, she finally lost her composure.

However, no matter how much Madam Shen tried to exonerate Li Yancheng, Lord Shen still slowly recounted the whole story.

Calm expression, then cruel!

"That child who died young was actually pushed off from behind."

Lord Shen ignored his wife's behavior and let her scream hysterically.

"This was not an accident at all."

Lord Shen calmly and clearly recounted the case from ten years ago.

More than a decade ago, Li Fang had taken a respectable woman as a concubine. Her name was Hua Xiaoniang. She also came from a respectable family, but because her family had fallen on hard times, she had to become a concubine and follow Li Fang.

In a way, this situation was similar to Wei Shuyi's. However, at that time, Li Fang was a newly appointed scholar and was in the prime of his life. Therefore, for Hua Xiaoniang, following Li Fang was not a difficult situation for her.

Perhaps because she was influenced by the literary atmosphere of the time, Hua Xiaoniang soon gave birth to a child for Li Fang, named Yan Ting.

And this child is the "prodigy" of the Li family mentioned earlier.

Li Yanting was an unusual child from birth; compared to other children, he was always much more intelligent.

While other babies were still lying in their swaddling clothes, drooling and making silly noises, Li Yanting was already able to roll over and crawl around.

When Li Yanting was able to walk, other children his age could only sit up...

In short, compared to others, Li Yanting is always one step ahead and can do things that other children cannot.

Li Yanting's unusual behavior quickly caught the attention of the Li family, or more precisely, the attention of Old Master Li.

At that time, Old Master Li was still alive. He was also worried about the future of the Li family, fearing that the entire Li family would decline after he got old.

As the saying goes, no one knows a son better than his father.

As a father, Mr. Li knew his two sons very well. He knew that they were not talented people. On the contrary, they were both ambitious but unlucky.

When Old Master Li was alive, it was fine; he could still keep them in check by virtue of being their father. But if Old Master Li were to pass away, then the two brothers would be free of a "tightening spell" on their heads!

By then, it will be very difficult for anyone to restrain them and stop their misbehavior.

So, with his heart filled with anxiety, Old Master Li had no choice but to find a capable child among the third generation of the Li family, so that he could carry on the Li family name and ensure the family's continuation.

As a result, the two most outstanding grandchildren of the Li family fell into the eyes of this Li family leader.

That is, Li Yancheng and Li Yanting.

At that time, Li Yancheng was nine years old and Li Yanting was five. Although there was a four-year age difference between them, they were treated equally by Old Master Li and received his training and...tests. However, even though Li Yancheng had been exposed to writing beforehand, whenever he was tested by Old Master Li, he always performed no differently than Li Yanting. In fact, the later the test went, the less he could maintain this level of performance. In the end, Li Yancheng was completely inferior to Li Yanting.

It was precisely because of this that the old man's gaze toward Li Yanting became even more amiable. However, this gaze was Li Yancheng's nightmare!

So, after a meticulously planned scheme, Li Yancheng finally turned against his half-brother!
"On the day Yan Ting had his accident, Wen Lu saw Yan Cheng."

Wenlu was an old man who had served Lord Shen for a long time, and his loyalty was beyond doubt.

Similarly, this means that everything he said is true.

"It's near the Qinghan Pond owned by the Li family."

Lord Shen explained what he knew: "At that time, Wenlu needed to relieve himself, so he hid in a corner of the garden to do so. By chance, he saw Yan Cheng walking out from near Qinghan Pond."

Upon hearing this, Madam Shen began to clench her hands tightly, her face extremely somber.

"And not long after that, news of Yan Ting's accident spread!"

Lord Shen ultimately did not speak plainly, but said tactfully, "Madam, you should remember what Yan Cheng said back then, right?"

"He said he's always been reading inside the house and has never gone out!"

"I'm sure you understand the implications of this!"

Madam Shen didn't speak, but just pursed her lips tightly, looking somewhat dazed.

She truly never imagined that her most trusted nephew would commit such a heinous act!

You have to understand, no matter what, Yan Ting is still his younger brother who shares the same bloodline!

At that time, Yan Ting was just a child. Even though he had some talent, he didn't understand anything else and only knew how to be close to his older brother.

Perhaps Hua Xiaoniang played a part in this, but it is undeniable that Yan Ting always followed behind his elder brother Li Yancheng and was close to him.

Unfortunately, all of this was in vain in the end!

"so!"

Lord Shen concluded, "Madam, now you understand my concerns, don't you?"

……

The day passed very quickly.

Like an arrow on a bowstring, it vanished in an instant.

Sheng Changquan eventually had a meal at the Shen family's house. However, for some reason, only Master Shen came out during the meal, while Madam Shen did not attend.

Lord Shen explained that his wife was unwell and therefore unable to come out, instead resting in the backyard. Upon hearing this, Shen Li immediately went back to the backyard to check on his mother, leaving Sheng Changquan to drink with Lord Shen at the same table.

As for Shen Jun, she didn't appear in front of Sheng Changquan at all because of the strict separation between men and women, which actually made Sheng Changquan feel quite comfortable.

After all, the absence of that attention made him feel more at ease.

On the other hand, since everyone else was away, Sheng Changquan took the opportunity to have a brief chat with Lord Shen about the Yu family.

It has to be said, talking to smart people is so convenient.

Sheng Changquan had only mentioned the friendship between the Sheng and Yu families during the short time he spent drinking tea after the meal, but Lord Shen immediately understood the implied meaning in Sheng Changquan's words.

So, when Sheng Changquan left the Shen family, in addition to a basket of return gifts, he also carried a letter from Lord Shen to Grand Secretary Yu.

It needs to be clarified here that it's not that Lord Shen couldn't write directly to Grand Secretary Yu, but the two families had a very distant relationship and no other special interactions. Apart from official business, Lord Shen was really embarrassed to write anything private.

After all, Shen Shouzheng's desire to obtain a recommendation from Grand Secretary Yu could not really be considered official business, because it involved Shen Shouzheng's own personal motives.

Moreover, this was a special period, and the court officials who were nominated for cabinet positions were not allowed to visit the Yu family's home, lest they be criticized and their reputations be tarnished.

As the saying goes, "three men can make a tiger," meaning that something can be believed to happen by chance. But if someone were to openly visit the Yu family's door, there would be plenty of stories to tell in the future!
Therefore, Sheng Changquan took on the responsibility of being a messenger to connect the Shen and Yu families and make them both happy.

……

On the way back.

"Young Master, how did things go today?"

Xu Changqing followed behind Sheng Changquan and asked in a low voice.

"Hmm? That's great!"

Sheng Changquan understood the implication in Xu Changqing's words, realizing that he was curious about the outcome of Lord Shen's entry into the cabinet. However, such important matters were not to be publicized, so Sheng Changquan did not intend to elaborate, but simply said, "The things I wanted to do have all been resolved!"

"what?"

Xu Changqing scratched his head, somewhat doubtful: "Young Master, don't lie to me, have you really solved everything?"

"Then...the matter of Minister Yu..."

Xu Changqing asked in a low voice, "You've resolved it too?"

"hehe!"

Sheng Changquan didn't say anything more, just smiled, everything... was understood without words.

"Ah~"

Upon seeing his young master's mysterious smile, Xu Changqing's face fell: "Young master, you..."

In fact, Xu Changqing had already guessed the outcome of the trip when he saw Sheng Changquan's smile as he left the Shen residence. However, due to his personality, even though he had already guessed it, he still wanted to get confirmation from Sheng Changquan himself.

However, Sheng Changquan didn't say anything in the end...

……

Shengfu.

"call!"

"Finally back!"

When Sheng Changquan returned home, he immediately felt a quiet and harmonious atmosphere.

Although the Sheng family doesn't have the same strength as the Shen family, just being within their territory always brings a sense of inexplicable peace of mind.

Unbeknownst to him, Sheng Changquan had already come to regard this Sheng Mansion as his true home!
"Seventh Young Master!"

"Ok?"

Suddenly hearing someone calling his name, Sheng Changquan quickly turned around.

"Seventh Young Master..."

In the distance, Sheng Changbai's servant, Han Niu, rushed over: "Seventh Young Master! The master has instructed that he and the Second Young Master are waiting for you at Hanhai Hall!"

(End of this chapter)