Tang Dynasty: A Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls for Li Er at the Start

Chapter 283 Your Majesty has such a cruel heart!

Inside Dali Temple.

"What does Wen He mean by this? We've been waiting here for over an hour, and he dares to treat us so rudely!"

A middle-aged man slammed his fist on the table, his eyes glaring as if he wanted to devour Wen He alive.

Sitting opposite him, Cui Dunli slowly held his teacup, took a sip of tea, and smiled.

“Brother Renyou, please don’t be impatient. Young people are sleep-deprived, so they naturally wake up a little slower. It’s just that we arrived earlier.”

Upon hearing this, Wang Renyou raised an eyebrow in surprise, and all eyes in the hall turned to Cui Dunli's face.

Everyone knows that the Cui family of Boling lost Cui An in this incident, so they should be more anxious than anyone else. Why are they speaking up for Wen He instead?

Although Wang Renyou had never met Wen He, he had heard about the boy's prowess from his elders in the clan.

He was a ruthless opportunist who could extract money from even the smallest things. He had previously made countless sums of money from various paper mills just by securing the distribution rights.

Today's special summons suggests that he's going to make exorbitant demands again. How can Choi Don-rye remain so composed?
"Brother Anshang, I heard yesterday that you met with Wen He?"

The middle-aged man sitting below Cui Dunli suddenly asked a question.

Cui Dunli glanced at the person beside him, put down his teacup, and looked calm and composed.

"Indeed, Brother Anye, what advice do you have for me?"

"I dare not presume to offer my guidance, but although our two families are Qinghe and Boling respectively, we both originate from the same lineage. In fact, the affairs of our two families are nothing more than the affairs of one family."

Indeed, this is Cui from Qinghe, the father of Cui Ming in prison.

Yesterday someone reported that Cui Dunli had met with Wen He in private, and that the two had a very pleasant conversation.

Cui Anye had already made up his mind. This morning, when he saw that Cui Dunli not only carried a heavy wooden box, but also showed no signs of anxiety, his doubts immediately turned into certainty.

Moreover, he had just noticed that when Cui Dunli came, he brought an extra carriage with a huge box on it.

I don't know what it is.

“Brother Anye, instead of asking me, why don’t you ask Brother Renyou? He might know something too.”

Cui Dunli chuckled softly.

Cui Anye came empty-handed today, so it seems no one delivered a message to him.

However, Wang Renyou also brought a large box with him.

It seems someone must have tipped him off.

Cui Dunli recalled that Liu Dewei seemed to have some connection with the Wang family of Taiyuan, and his brother-in-law seemed to be the daughter of the Wang family.

It seems that Liu Dewei must have discussed this with Wang Renyou beforehand.

Cui Anye's gaze suddenly turned towards Wang Renyou.

"Ahem, it's just a matter of ransom, I only found out about it this morning." Wang Renyou coughed twice.

What happened to the promise of the five surnames and seven clans being of the same blood and lineage?

You didn't even inform us about such important news!

Cui Anye's eyes narrowed slightly, and he felt a surge of dissatisfaction.

Although he was Cui from Qinghe, the person opposite him was also the King of Taiyuan.

The two were evenly matched, and since they were also related by marriage, he could only swallow his anger.

However, he soon thought of something.

"Wen He's actions are tantamount to openly soliciting bribes. If we were to report him..."

Before Cui Anye could finish speaking, he suddenly felt a void beside him. He turned around and saw that Cui Dunli had actually gotten up, picked up a teacup, and sat down opposite him.

Wang Renyou, who had just been cursing Wen He, lowered his head and stared at his feet as if he could see something amazing in them.

They're going to commit even more sins!
If you want to go, then go by yourself.

The prestigious Cui family of Qinghe is full of talented people, so how could they send such an idiot as you?

I still don't understand who's behind this.

"I wonder how this young master intends to advise me? Would you like me to offer some advice?"

A soft laugh suddenly came from outside.

The three people inside the room were startled and turned to look at each other almost at the same time.

A young man stood outside the door, a smirk playing on his lips as he sized them up.

Cui Anye and Wang Renyou were meeting Wen He for the first time, so they didn't recognize her until Cui Dunli stood up.

"Jiaying, I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting." Cui Dunli greeted him with a beaming smile, leaving Cui Anye and Wang Renyou dumbfounded.

When did this Imperial Secretary become so friendly with people?
Even if Cui An was in prison, he was just a minor junior member of the Cui family of Boling.

Surely it's not enough to make Choi Don-rye act like this.

The two looked at each other, but hesitated for only a moment before getting up.

However, at that moment, Wen He returned the greeting to Cui Dunli.

The simple phrase "Brother Anshang" left the two speechless once again.

'How come Cui Dunli is so familiar with Wen He? Why would the Cui clan of Boling join forces with the Zheng clan of Xingyang to deal with him this time? Could it be that the Cui clan of Boling has already pledged allegiance to the emperor?'

They were both startled.

Although Cui Dunli noticed their surprise, he did not explain, but instead smiled and introduced the two to Wen He.

Wen He was unfamiliar with Cui Anye and had no recollection of ever seeing his name in any history book. However, he was extremely familiar with another person, Wang Renyou.

He entered officialdom through the imperial examination during the Zhenguan era. His grandfather, Wang Sizheng, was an important minister during the Western Wei Dynasty, and rose to the position of Left Minister.

His elder brother's wife was Princess Tong'an, Li Yuan's own sister.

However, this was not the reason why Wen He remembered him. The biggest reason was that his daughter was the future Empress Wang of Emperor Li Zhi.

After Empress Wang was deposed, Xu Jingzong petitioned to strip Wang Renyou of his title on the grounds of "private favors within the palace".

The chances of Li Zhi being born in this world are almost zero.

So, by that logic, he should be considered his daughter's benefactor.

"Jiaying knows Brother Renyou?"

When Cui Dunli saw Wen He's eyes flicker, he assumed that Wen He had a good impression of the Wang family and became wary.

"No, I just felt he looked familiar. I think I saw him in prison yesterday." Wen He chuckled twice and changed the subject.

Upon hearing this, Cui Dunli couldn't help but chuckle.

But Wang Renyou's expression was not very good.

“Gaoyang County magistrate, don’t try to pull any other strings. I’ve already brought the money. Please release my child immediately!” Wang Renyou’s tone was somewhat unfriendly.

Cui Anye, standing to the side, squinted at Wen He and said, "No one informed me yesterday, but if you can bring my son back today, I can send someone to deliver the money tomorrow."

"No rush, no rush," Wen He said with a smile, waving her hand.

Then, under the watchful eyes of the three men, he walked into the main hall and sat down in the seat of honor.

Cui Anye and Wang Renyou's expressions grew increasingly grim.

How could a ten-year-old child, from a farming family, dare to sit at the head of the table?

Just as Cui Anye was about to speak, he saw Cui Dunli step forward and sit down to Wen He's left, then look at the two of them with a blank expression: "Brother Anye, Brother Renyou, aren't you going to sit down?"

"I won't sit!"

Cui Anye snorted and then turned his gaze to Wen He: "Gaoyang County County Boy, if you want money, I can have someone send it to you later, but you must at least let me see my second son."

"No rush, I already said there's no need to rush. Let's settle the accounts first." Wen He smiled, then took out a rolled-up piece of paper from her sleeve.

Even Cui Dunli looked at him with some confusion.

"This is Jung Yunho's confession from yesterday. It details the crimes committed by Choi An and the others. Tsk tsk."

At this point, Wen He shook her head, feigning a sigh.

“That wool belongs to His Majesty. How dare they do this? For these crimes, even a hundred lashes and exile to Xisha Prefecture would be enough.”

Wen He clicked his tongue twice and turned the confession in his hand over.

"This is impossible!"

Cui Anye gave a cold shout.

Wang Renyou's eyes widened immediately, and he retorted, "This matter was instigated by Cui of Qinghe, and conspired by Cui of Boling and the Zheng family. My son was dragged into it!"

"Ahem, my dear brother, we made a promise yesterday." Cui Dunli hadn't expected such a turn of events today.

Upon hearing this, Wen He turned to look at him and chuckled, "It's only because it's you, Brother Anshang. If it were anyone else, I definitely wouldn't be so easy to talk to. Oh well, you can go to the prison and take Cui An away yourself. Sigh."

His expression, as if he had suffered a huge loss, made Cui Dunli feel really awkward.

The latter chuckled twice and bowed solemnly: "Thank you, Jiaying."

As he turned around, he caught a glimpse of Cui Anye and Wang Renyou's ashen faces, and his pace quickened involuntarily.

These two are likely to receive a good "welcome" from Wen He.

The door to the main hall closed behind him, cutting off the outside light and making the hall darker.

Wen He slowly turned her head, her gaze sweeping over Cui Anye and Wang Renyou's faces. The warmth in her smile gradually faded, replaced by a hint of coldness: "Now, it's time to settle accounts with you two."

Wang Renyou's Adam's apple bobbed, and he subconsciously looked at the wooden box at his feet.

There were five hundred strings of cash he had prepared there, but he had a feeling that this money was far from enough.

Cui Anye clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. He suddenly realized that the boy in front of him was not a "skinner" at all.

Instead, it was a wolf wearing human skin, seemingly smiling, but its fangs were already showing.

Wen He picked up the confession, gently blew off the dust, and said in an eerily calm voice, "Cui Ming is one of the masterminds, and should be punished according to the law..."

He deliberately dragged out his words, watching Cui Anye's face gradually turn deathly pale.

"As for Brother Renyou's son... although he wasn't the mastermind, he knew about it but didn't report it. He'll probably get a few dozen lashes and be exiled for thousands of miles. Tsk tsk, he's injured. He'll probably get sick on the way."

Wang Renyou's face fell instantly. He knew that after these dozens of lashes, his son would probably lose half his life and would not be exiled at all.

"Wenxianzi, just get straight to the point. The Wang family of Taiyuan has plenty of money." Wang Renyou's eyes were cold; he had been pushed to the limit.

'Your Majesty is so cruel!'

In his opinion, Wen He, at such a young age, certainly couldn't have thought of these things.

It must be the person behind him!

Your Majesty the Emperor of the Great Tang Dynasty!
It's a shame that the Wang family and the royal family are related by marriage, yet they still scheme like this!
Wen He was unaware that Wang Renyou's overthinking had led to Li Er taking the blame for him.

He smiled and held up one finger.

"One price, ten thousand strings of cash."

(End of this chapter)