gnovel Chapter 16 Su Wan: Qingque, what are you doing at Yichun Garden?
Chapter 16 Su Wan: Qingque, what are you doing at Yichun Garden?
When Li Tai woke up again, he found himself lying on a pile of firewood, bound tightly with his hands and feet.
It turned out that Xue'er had put sleeping pills in his drink beforehand, which caused him to faint and lose consciousness.
At this moment, two women appeared in front of Li Tai. One of them, dressed in black, sat in a chair facing him.
The woman in black had her face covered by a veil, so her appearance was not visible. Standing next to her was the girl Xue'er.
Li Tai was completely bewildered and didn't know what was going on. He tried hard to recall what had happened before.
He remembered that he was in Yichun Garden, discussing calligraphy with Miss Xue'er, when he suddenly fainted. How did he end up in a place like this? And what kind of place is this?
He noticed that Xue'er was very different from before; the smile on her face was gone, and she was holding a gleaming pair of scissors in her hand.
Li Tai was extremely nervous, unsure of what they intended to do to him: "What...what do you want to do?"
"What are you going to do? I'll cut off your manhood in a minute, and I'll make sure you don't mess around here!" Xue'er's eyes flashed coldly.
"Please don't!" Li Tai trembled.
This is the kitchen behind Yichun Garden.
The woman in black sitting in the chair was Su Wan.
Because Su Wan's mother had once saved the madam's life, Su Wan and the madam sang this play together, and Xue'er dressed up as a geisha to entertain Li Tai.
Li Tai only thought about coming here to have fun and be carefree; he never considered these things.
"I'm asking you, do you want to live or die?" Su Wan's voice was icy.
"I...I naturally want to live!" Li Tai said nervously.
"Very good. If you behave well, perhaps I can consider sparing your life."
"I'll definitely do my best."
"What's your name?"
"I... no, no, my name is Li Tai." Fear was evident in Li Tai's eyes.
Because he understood that even the greatest king wouldn't be able to control this place.
A phoenix fallen from the water is no better than a chicken; a tiger fallen to the plains is bullied by dogs!
"What are you doing at Yichun Garden?"
"I...I'm just here to have some fun!"
Su Wan stared into his eyes, then looked down at him: "How old are you? Is your thing even fully grown yet? You're already acting like this!"
"..." Li Tai blushed, unsure how to answer her.
"I have a few questions for you, and you must answer them truthfully."
"If you don't tell the truth, Miss Xue'er doesn't have a good temper. If she decides to harm you, I won't be able to stop her."
At this moment, Li Tai was cursing inwardly. He thought to himself, "Where have those two guards gone? Once I get out, I'll skin them alive! Did you sneak out to a woman's bed while I wasn't looking upstairs?"
Li Tai's face was pale, and sweat the size of soybeans rolled down his forehead. This was understandable, as his body was weak and he would be covered in sweat with the slightest movement.
"When you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head," Li Tai quickly replied, "Definitely! Don't worry, I'll answer truthfully about anything I know."
"Did you go to the East Palace to build a grape trellis?"
"yes."
"Did you have your men bury a wooden dummy in the East Palace's toilet?"
Upon hearing this, Li Tai's heart skipped a beat. He wondered how she knew about this matter so secretly.
"Hurry up and tell me!"
"Yes." Li Tai's eyes were fixed on the sharp scissors in Xue'er's hand.
Xue'er took out paper and pen and started taking notes.
"So, why did you do this? What are your intentions?"
"This—." Li Tai felt that this was a bit awkward and he couldn't say it.
While Li Tai hesitated, Xue'er walked up to him and slapped him twice across the face. Then, she picked up a pair of scissors and waved them in front of him: "Master, why waste words with this kind of person? Just cripple him!"
Seeing how fierce Xue'er was, Li Tai trembled in fear: "No, please don't, I'll tell you!"
"What a jerk! He needs to be beaten!"
Li Tai felt a burning pain on his cheek and thought to himself, "This little hussy is really ruthless." He continued, "It's like this. My men gave me an idea: if we bury a wooden figure in the Eastern Palace, we can do what Jiang Chong did to Crown Prince Liu Ju and frame Li Chengqian."
"If I can bring down the crown prince, then I'll have a chance to take the throne."
After hearing this, Su Wan thought to herself, "You guys are really vicious. You'll do anything to get the position of Crown Prince."
Su Wan stood up, circled Li Tai twice, and asked, "Then do you know what your relationship is with the Crown Prince?"
Li Tai thought to himself, "Isn't that a pointless question?"
However, he dared not argue: "Li Chengqian is my elder brother, we are brothers."
Su Wan sneered: "So you do know that you two are brothers. Then let me ask you again, how did Ji Fa treat Boyi Kao back then, and how did Liu Cang assist Liu Zhuang?"
Are they all like you?
Upon hearing this, Li Tai was a little puzzled. He wondered how the woman in black knew the two stories the Crown Prince had told him.
This is absolutely bizarre!
"I was confused for a moment, and listened to the slander of a villain, which led me to do such a foolish thing. I regret it now." Li Tai said with a look of shame.
"Really? Are you truly remorseful?"
"Yes, I now also think this was utterly absurd."
"Then let me ask you again, did you go to the Eastern Palace to assassinate the Crown Prince with a dagger strapped to your leg?"
Upon hearing this, Li Tai was even more alarmed. He wondered who this woman in black was, that she even knew about this matter. It seemed that her relationship with Li Chengqian was extraordinary. Could she be a female assassin raised by Li Chengqian?
Li Tai was completely baffled.
Xue'er raised her hand: "What are you staring at? Hurry up and tell me the truth!"
"Yes, yes, please don't hit me!" Li Tai's face was still burning with pain. "That night I drank too much and was blinded by greed, losing my mind!"
When I returned from the restroom, I found the Crown Prince fast asleep. I planned to take advantage of his sleep and kill him. However, just as I raised the dagger high, intending to assassinate him, someone threw a pebble through the window, striking my wrist. The dagger fell to the ground, and the Crown Prince woke up. I then lied and said I wanted to present the dagger to him.
"You're really cunning. I never realized you were so malicious. Didn't you consider that if you killed the Crown Prince, wouldn't you be afraid of being investigated by the Court of Judicial Review? Do you think you can get away with it?"
"Now that I think about it, I realize you're right. But in that situation, my mind was a complete mess. I wasn't thinking about anything except killing the Crown Prince. Once he was dead, the position would be mine."
Su Wan sighed, "No wonder people often say that greed blinds the mind!"
"Young lady, we have no past grievances or present conflicts. I have answered all your questions truthfully. Could you please let me go?"
At this moment, Xue'er said from the side, "Master, this guy's malicious intent is too deep, we can't let him go! It would be easier to kill him!"
Li Tai panicked even more upon hearing this and hurriedly pleaded, "You can't kill me! I've told you everything I need to say, without hiding a single word. Just let me go, and you can ask for anything you want. As long as it's within my power, I will definitely fulfill your request!"
"As long as you don't kill me!"
"You said you wouldn't kill me, so here you are, I'll castrate you right now!"
At this point, Li Tai had completely lost his dignity as the King of Yue. With a sob in his voice, he said, "Two Guanyin Bodhisattvas, that won't do. I'm not married yet, and I still need to have children. I hope you will have great compassion and spare me."
Su Wan saw this and was both annoyed and amused: "It's not difficult to get us to release you, but you must agree to a few conditions."
"Okay, okay, I'll agree to any condition, even hundreds."
"Then listen carefully: "
Firstly, from this day forward, you are forbidden from having any ambitions regarding the position of Crown Prince;
Secondly, the Crown Prince is your elder brother, and you must treat him with respect;
Thirdly, you must not slander the Crown Prince in front of your father and mother, and you are even more forbidden from plotting against the Crown Prince with your subordinates;
Fourthly, you should never come to places like this again. With your status, what kind of woman can't you have?
Why did you come to a place like this? Aren't you afraid of being seen by someone you know and having your story reported to your father and mother?"
"Okay, okay, I'll agree to all of that."
Xue'er, however, said from the side, "Master, this is too lenient on him."
He agreed now, but he forgot about it as soon as he turned around.
What if he doesn't learn his lesson? Why not cut off his left ear and feed it to the dogs? That way he'll learn his lesson.
Upon hearing this, Li Tai turned green with fright, thinking to himself that this girl was really ruthless: "No, no, no, please don't cut off my ear. I'll agree to any condition."
Fifthly, after you return, you must immediately pack your things and return to your fiefdom within three days. You are not allowed to linger in Chang'an.
Sixth, you are not allowed to harbor any thoughts of revenge.
Of course, if you insist on revenge, that's fine too.
However, I can tell you that since I can catch you today, I can catch you again tomorrow. Do you believe me?
By then, things won't be as easy for you as they are today.
I'll sharpen that dagger until it's razor-sharp, and then I'll rip your heart out!
Upon hearing this, Li Tai thought to himself that this was a truly ruthless move. If he were not in Chang'an, it would be equivalent to leaving the center of power, making it difficult to rise to a higher position again.
However, what the woman in black said wasn't too outrageous, as if she knew his whereabouts perfectly well! It wouldn't seem too difficult for her to catch him again.
Just as Li Tai was pondering how to answer, Su Wan asked:
"What, you don't want to? Since you have been made a king, you should go to your fiefdom. Why are you staying in Chang'an?"
Do you intend to undermine the imperial court's system?
Li Tai knew he was in the wrong, and what the other person said wasn't unreasonable, so he forced a smile and nodded, saying, "Alright, alright, I'll agree to all your demands. I will absolutely not retaliate!"
"Words are no proof, let's put it in writing!" Xue'er recorded all of their conversation, had Li Tai sign it, and also put his handprint and footprint on it.
Li Tai naturally understood that this was called drawing a black mark on a blank sheet of paper; once he signed it, it would be impossible for him to recant his testimony in the future.
But since I'm now in someone else's hands, I have no choice but to accept it.
Li Tai signed and sealed the paper, and Xue'er put away the confession.
Su Wan and Xue'er left the woodshed.
"Hey! Are you just going to leave like this? You haven't untied me yet!" Li Tai sat on the ground, shifting from side to side.
Upon hearing this, Xue'er turned around, took off her pair of smelly socks, rolled them into a ball, and stuffed them into Li Tai's mouth: "Are you satisfied now?"
"Ugh... ugh..." Li Tai felt like vomiting from the stench, but he couldn't speak anymore.
Su Wan and Xue'er exchanged a smile and left.
night.
The Eastern Palace.
Li Chengqian would spend seven or eight hours reading memorials every day from morning until late at night, leaving him dizzy and weak. He felt that if this continued, his body would soon break down.
Therefore, he developed a fitness plan.
Because of his leg problems, he is unable to perform some movements.
He asked Chengxin to prepare some fitness equipment so that he could do six sets of push-ups every night, fifty reps per set.
Six sets of sit-ups, fifty reps per set;
Jump rope 1,000 times on one leg;
This leads to six groups, each with twenty items, and so on.
Li Chengqian was lying on the ground doing push-ups.
At that moment, Su Wan walked in from outside.
She stood with her hands behind her back, tilted her head, and stared wide-eyed at Li Chengqian: "Your Highness, what...what are you doing?"
While doing push-ups, Li Chengqian answered her question: "Recently, I have been reading too many memorials and sitting for too long, and I feel that my physical strength is declining."
"I cannot always sit there reading memorials; I must appropriately strengthen my physical training."
Upon hearing this, Su Wan chuckled and asked, "What kind of movement is that, going up and down like that?"
"Push-ups!"
"Huh? Never heard of that, but from what I've observed, the movements are a bit rather unseemly, like a man and woman doing *that* in a room."
Li Chengqian was speechless upon hearing this.
He wondered how his push-up was so perfectly executed, with his whole body in a straight line, could it have sounded so different to her?
After doing fifty push-ups, Li Chengqian got up from the ground, his face flushed and his forehead slightly sweaty.
He walked to the table, picked up the teacup, and took two sips: "What brings you here to see me?"
Su Wan smiled broadly: "Do you remember what I told you a couple of days ago?"
Li Chengqian thought to himself, "You said so much the other day, who knows which sentence you were referring to?"
Su Wan understood what he meant: "I meant taking care of Qingque for you."
Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian was startled: "You... what did you do to Qingque?"
Su Wan pouted: "You seem to care about him quite a bit."
The problem is that you might treat him like a younger brother, but he might not treat you like an older brother.
Su Wan then recounted what had happened at Yichun Garden, and then handed the confession to Li Chengqian.