Jian Zhaoxing

Chapter 265 If one plan fails, try another!
"A promise? Strictly speaking, that's not a promise." Lin Zhiqing twirled the pen in his hand:
“It’s a threat.”

"Threatening? The Minister of Rites is a second-rank official, how could he be threatened by you?" Lin Yangyang was somewhat surprised.

"Everyone has weaknesses and secrets; it just depends on whether others know them or not," Lin Zhiqing shrugged.

"A secret?" Lin Yangyang's curiosity was piqued. "What secret? Tell me."

"That old geezer, the Minister of Rites, is having an affair with his daughter-in-law." Lin Zhiqing lowered his voice.

"Incestuous relationship?" Lin Yangyang exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't he the Minister of Rites? How could he be so shameless?"

"More than that, his first grandson was actually his own son," Lin Zhiqing revealed a bombshell.

Lin Yangyang almost didn't react: "You mean, the son of the Minister of Rites thought was his son, but he's actually the Minister of Rites' grandson, his son's brother?"

"That's the meaning. The social order has collapsed, and that's all there is to it." Lin Zhiqing nodded.

"That old geezer is practically halfway to his grave, and he's still playing these fancy games!" Lin Yangyang sighed, thinking of the Minister of Rites' daughter-in-law.

"It's a pity that his daughter-in-law is so beautiful, and she was ruined by that old geezer."

"Wait, something's not right!" Lin Yangyang's mind started working again: "Qing-mei, how do you know about this? Even the son of the Minister of Rites probably doesn't know this."

Lin Zhiqing shook his head: "Of course his son knows."

"You know? Which man wouldn't explode in this situation?" Lin Yangyang was extremely puzzled.

It's true that most people can't remain calm and not react when they've been cheated on, but those who can maintain their high positions in the vortex of Shengjing's East Market are certainly not ordinary people.

Lin Zhiqing parted her lips slightly: "We are all in this together, and we are all in this together. If this matter is exposed by outsiders, his family's wealth and honor will be cut off."

"The son of the Minister of Rites has been spoiled since childhood. How could he possibly ruin his own good life?"

"Such a cowardly man will only cause his wife to suffer in the end."

"No matter what you say, it all boils down to profit."

Lin Yangyang's expression wasn't pleasant: "Qing-meimei, you know so much about this, could it be that you've gone to climb over someone else's wall?"

"It's not that bad." Lin Zhiqing shook his head: "Speaking of which, we should thank Liu Mang."

“Besides the evidence I obtained from his residence, I also got some dirt on some officials.”

"This thing wasn't very useful back then, but it's just right to bring it out now."

If this matter hadn't been related to the Minister of Rites, Lin Zhiqing would have almost forgotten what he was holding.

As the saying goes, "One should fulfill one's duties in a position of authority." The position of Minister of Rites, being one of the Six Ministries, is of paramount importance.

However, since the Minister of Rites committed such a serious offense that violated etiquette, his punishment would only be more severe.

Lin Zhiqing used this incident as leverage to blackmail the Minister of Rites into erasing the records of the Lin family having received imperial gifts.

The two essentially made a deal.

"I see." Lin Yangyang nodded. "But if it was obtained from Liu Mang's residence, wouldn't Liu Mang's superior, Jiang Liuyun, know about it?"

"Most likely they don't know." Lin Zhiqing had considered this question before.

But she had observed that Jiang Liuyun's behavior didn't seem like he knew about these things.

If an explanation must be given, these things were likely a way out that Liu Mang had left for himself.

Because Liu Mang knew very well that he was just a handy tool.

If one day a tool loses its value, it's hard to guarantee it won't be kicked aside.

With this mindset, he might secretly collect these things, seeking opportunities for advancement or leaving himself a way out.

Of course, the latter is more likely.

“With such a huge weakness of the Minister of Rites in our hands, there should be no room for maneuver in this matter, right?” Lin Yangyang said. “No.” Lin Zhiqing shook his head slightly: “He has cultivated his power in the court for so many years, he can’t possibly lose his composure because of a mere Minister of Rites.”

"Just you wait, he'll come up with another trick."

Lin Zhiqing's tone was very firm.

Lin Yangyang scratched her head: "Make a move? It's probably going to be difficult for him to use the imperial gift as an excuse now, isn't it?"

"With Lu Huai in the Ministry of Revenue, the evidence there is practically negligible. Apart from appealing to the emperor, what other options do they have?"

Filing a complaint with the emperor is not in line with Jiang Liuyun's style.

He has cultivated a persona of deep affection, but if he were to turn his back on the Lin family, that persona would easily crumble.

Lin Zhiqing slowly said, "Aside from the imperial gifts, we certainly have something incriminating against us."

“Cousin, have you forgotten? When Liu Mang was killed, we took the opportunity to bring the flute player back.”

"He clashed with the flute player in the Bianliang incident. How could such a cunning person forget that?"

"The flute player?" Lin Yangyang couldn't help but pat her head. "Oh dear, how could I have completely forgotten about this?"

"I took you back to Hengzhang that day and didn't think about the flute player at all. Could he have taken the flute player back with him?"

"No," Lin Zhiqing said decisively. "When Lu Huai covered the rear that day, he had already taken the person with him."

"He took him away? Then why should we be afraid of Jiang Liuyun?" Lin Yangyang's mind was in a daze.

Lin Zhiqing put down what he was doing and slowly looked up: "I suspect he knows where that flute player is hiding now."

"He is Jiang Liuyun. How could he not have thought of something that we can all think of?"

"What if Lu Huai's every move was under Jiang Liuyun's watchful eye?"

"What does this mean?" Lin Yangyang didn't understand.

Lin Zhiqing stood up:
"What I mean is that Jiang Liuyun probably already guessed that I would try to resolve the matter of the imperial gift on his way back."

“He had expected to run into trouble, and given that he was a bit behind us, he may have done something else on his way back.”

"If we want to find something to hide from the Lin family and bring them down, then the flute player is undoubtedly a great opportunity."

Lin Zhiqing frowned slightly:
"On the way back to Shengjing, he was unable to extend his reach to Shengjing, but he had the opportunity to make plans against the Flute People."

"Moreover, there is a high probability that he will bring up the old matter again and overturn the story of Liu Mang and his fourth uncle once more."

"Furthermore, he is likely to distort the truth and attribute the origin of the flute player to the Lin family."

Lin Zhiqing once used his flute to control a flute player, which is clear evidence of this.

If Jiang Liuyun finds the flute player that Lu Huai has hidden in Bianliang or Hengzhang, he can easily say that the Lin family conspired with the Lu family and pin the blame on Liu Mang.

Otherwise, who can explain why the Lin family would harbor a suspect?

The reason Lin Zhiqing hid the flute player was because he knew that the Dali Temple's investigation of Liu Mang was pointless.

She wanted to use the flute player to lure out the important figures behind Liu Mang.

In addition, Liu Mang used hypnosis to control others and deprive them of their thoughts, which made Lin Zhiqing, a psychological counselor, very uncomfortable.

She wanted to try to wake the flute player and see if she could get information about the person behind Liu Mang from him.

However, the flute player had been hypnotized for too long, making it extremely difficult to set things right.

Just as she was thinking this, Asagao knocked on the study door again:

"Miss, someone from the Dali Temple has arrived."