Chapter 101: Master of Conspiracy

  As the leader of the Jiang family, Jiang Xia was already familiar with conspiracies and intrigues. Simply put, Jiang Xia wasn't worried about conspiracies because they were just destructive actions taken in secret, and once exposed, the situation could be resolved. However, within conspiracies, there was another type of strategy called "yangmou". Yangmou could be taking advantage of the situation or originating from a conspiracy, then turning it into an open plot.

  For example, in front of this situation, Jiang Xia smelled a hint of conspiracy turning into a plot.

  He Yunlai died after taking the Nine Yang Dan, but solving this case is not difficult. All that's needed is to investigate how He Yunlai died and then show the prescription for the Nine Yang Dan to a famous doctor. Once it's confirmed that the Nine Yang Dan couldn't have been poisonous, then Jiang Xia won't be implicated in the matter.

  But Wang Baosheng came up and unconditionally defended himself without asking about the situation, which made things unclear.

  And then, Huang Xiaobi was killed by a hidden weapon and framed himself. This matter is not difficult to solve, just need to let Jiang Xia recount the case, and then let a hidden weapon expert reenact the case to prove its feasibility, and then find another eyewitness, Jiang Xia's suspicion will be completely washed away.

  However, Wang Baosheng directly defined it as self-defense mis-killing and openly shielded him.

  It's gotten to the point where even if Jiang Xia jumped into the Yellow River, he couldn't wash himself clean. Moreover, Jiang Xia could foresee that from tomorrow on, the entire capital would be abuzz with rumors that he had sold medicine that killed people, committed murder in broad daylight, and colluded with officials to cover up his crimes.

  With such rumors spreading together, it will soon attract the attention of the Dalit Temple, the Ducha Institute, and the Ministry of Punishment. At that time, Jiang Xia may not be able to explain himself clearly anymore.

  Although Jiang Xia had almost seen through the entire conspiracy, he was temporarily unable to break through. This is where the brilliance of a clever plan lies - it doesn't just create a situation, but also momentum. Situations can be broken, but momentum is hard to resist.

  Met a master, Jiang Xia thought to herself.

  Jiang Xia, who had never had the chance to speak, cupped his hands towards Wang Baosheng and smiled as he said, "Thank you, Lord Wang." Then he turned around and walked out of the main hall, striding away with a flourish.

  After returning to the Xiangyang Mountain Villa, Jiang Xia directly returned to his own Four Seasons Residence. He spread a piece of rice paper on the long table in the study and picked up a brush to write down names one by one: Liu Jin, Marquis of Moyang, Li Qianshun, Zhu Youxiao.

  After thinking for a while, Jiang Xia struck out the names of Liu Jin and Li Qianshou one by one, leaving only two people, Marquis Mu Yang and Zhu Youqian.

  After thinking for a while, Jiang Xia Moyang Hou's name was crossed out, and only Zhu Youxiao was left on the rice paper.

  "Jiang Xia, are you in the house?" It was Li Dongyang's voice.

  "Yes, Master." Jiang Xia immediately walked out of the room and bowed to Li Dongyang.

  Li Dongyang nodded and slightly raised his chin: "Let's go, let's talk inside."

  "Good."

  Jiang Xia and Li Dongyang entered the house together, and after sitting down in the study, Li Dongyang inadvertently saw what Jiang Xia had written on that piece of Xuan paper. Li Dongyang nodded slightly and said, "It seems you've already thought of it."

  Jiang Xia nodded slightly and said, "I still have use for Liu Jin now, and he hasn't reached the point where I must be eliminated, so it shouldn't be him. As for Marquis Mu Yang, he doesn't understand me at all, and his memory of me is probably only that I beat his deceased son Liu Qingyun in the Imperial Academy. And as for Li Qianshou, if he could set up such a scheme, he wouldn't have remained an eighth-rank official until now. So the only person left is this Prince Xingxian."

  "As a teacher, I also think that only he can come up with such a plan. Often heard people say that King Xing is loyal and kind-hearted, but I always felt that this person wouldn't be so simple. Didn't expect him to be so ruthless at the first move, it seems he's prepared to let you die from rumors."

  Li Dongyang has been through the officialdom for decades, and has gone through four dynasties without decline. This is absolutely not a coincidence. Unexpectedly, after just hearing someone mention what happened today, Li Dongyang already knew everything about it.

  "Have you thought about how to respond next?" Li Dongyang asked Jiang Xia.

  Jiang Xia shook his head, and his eyebrows slightly furrowed as he said: "Originally, it was two very simple things, but he took the initiative, making things a bit tricky. For now, we can only see how he makes his next move, and we can only counterattack."

  "Hmm, if the enemy doesn't move, I won't move either. When he reveals his weakness, this is indeed the only way to respond for now." Li Dongyang nodded and said.

  "Someone." Jiang Xia suddenly heard footsteps approaching the door, his eyebrows furrowed, and he gazed fiercely at his own doorway.

  Just then, there was a knock at the door and Zhong Bin's voice came: "The Emperor wants to see you."

  "Has Lao Er arrived?" Jiang Xia immediately walked out of the room and saw Zhu Houzhao in the waiting hall. After that, Jiang Xia did not salute but asked directly: "How did you come here?"

  Zhu Houzhao said: "I heard Liu Jin tell me about the incident at the pharmacy yesterday, and also the incident at the Shuntian Prefecture government office today. What's going on? How could this happen?"

  Jiang Xia shook his head. Without conclusive evidence, he couldn't tell Zhu Houzhao that it was all a plot by Zhu Youxiao. So Jiang Xia could only say: "I don't know the specifics either, but one thing is certain - someone wants to frame me."

  Zhu Houzhao nodded and a hint of sharpness flashed in his eyes, "You don't have to worry, I believe you. As long as I believe you, no one under the sky can touch you."

  Jiang Xia's heart was moved, he nodded and said to Zhu Houzhao: "You also don't overdo it in getting involved here, otherwise they will say that I have you backing me up so I can be so lawless. I myself will be careful, as long as the person who is framing me reveals a little weakness, I will definitely defeat him with one blow."

  "Good." Zhu Houzhao said to Liu Jin beside him: "Liu Jin, remember to have the people from the East Factory investigate thoroughly. You must clear Jiang Xia's name for me as soon as possible."

  "Yes, your humble servant obeys." Liu Jin said.

  Jiang Xia also nodded at Liu Jin and said: "Thank you, sir."

  "Master Jiang, no need to be polite, this is also something our family should do."

  Zhu Houzhao nodded and said, "Alright, the Goryeo envoy is still waiting for me in the palace, I have to go first. Don't worry about your matter, as long as I haven't nodded, no one can touch you."

  When he heard that Zhu Houzhao had abandoned the Goryeo envoys and didn't care, Jiang Xia was even more moved. He nodded and said, "Alright, receiving the Goryeo envoys is a big deal, you should hurry back to the palace."

  "Well, I'm off."

  "I'll send you."

  Jiang Xia sent Zhu Houzhao out from the back door, and Liu Jin immediately went to call someone to drive the carriage over. Jiang Xia and Zhu Houzhao stood at the entrance of the back door, and Zhu Houzhao originally wanted to say something to Jiang Xia, but suddenly a group of common people ran past, among whom one of them loudly said: "It's here, this is where Jiang Xia lives."

  The common people rushed in and didn't know who shouted: "Your... Your Majesty?"

  Then, among the crowd of civilians, it was unclear who knelt down first, but suddenly everyone knelt down and shouted loudly: "Your humble subjects pay homage to Your Majesty, wishing you a million years of longevity."

  Zhu Houzhao was also visibly startled, a group of ordinary people actually had someone who could recognize him, it was clear that this matter was premeditated.

  At this moment, the carriage rushed over, and Liu Jin jumped down from the carriage to ask for help to lift Zhu Houzhao up. Jiang Xia clearly heard someone in the crowd saying: "Heavens, it's really the emperor, that person is Liu Jin, Liu Gonggong."

  Zhu Houzhao departed hastily without saying a word, neither acknowledging nor denying his identity.

  Jiang Xia swept a glance over the common people in front of him, and silently muttered to himself: "He's made his move again." As he thought this, a cold glint flashed across Jiang Xia's eyes. In this great Ming dynasty, there were few people he cared about; apart from Nian Nu and Ru Shuang, two sisters, Li Dongyang was one of them, and then there was Zhu Houzhao.

  No matter how Ming history evaluates Zhu Houzhao, no matter how Zhu Houzhao treats others. But all along, Jiang Xia has felt that Zhu Houzhao really cares about himself and truly regards him as a friend. In front of him, he has never put on any emperor's airs. When this thing happened, he almost didn't hesitate to choose to stand by his side, and the person who set up this layout had obviously already calculated Zhu Houzhao and his relationship into it.

  Jiang Xia could almost predict that the next thing this person would do was to make a big deal out of his relationship with Zhu Houzhao. This just so happened to touch Jiang Xia's bottom line, and in his heart he secretly said: "Since you want to play, then I'll play along with you till the end."

  Jiang Xia pushed open the back door of Xianyao Villa and went in, then closed the door.

  The next day, the sun was shining brightly, and the almanac said that this day was suitable for worshiping ancestors, getting married, and breaking ground, but not suitable for traveling far.

  Jiang Xia wore a brocade robe brought by Zhong Bin and walked out the door. He casually found a teahouse and sat down in a corner, then perked up his ears to listen to the conversations of the people around him. His five senses were different from ordinary people, so he could hear every word that everyone around him said clearly.

  "Hey, have you heard? It turns out that the current emperor is really a good man with a penchant for men. Previously, he favored Qian Ning, but now he's switched to favoring Jiang Xia. For his sake, the emperor deliberately distanced himself from Qian Ning and then bought him a large mansion in Xizhimen to open a carefree mountain villa. He also gave him the imperial palace's secret recipe for alchemy, allowing him to sell medicine on Sanlihe Street. Unfortunately, Jiang Xia made an error with his alchemy and ended up killing the wealthy He Yunlai from Nancheng. When He's concubine went to reason with him, she was killed by him in broad daylight."

  "Then doesn't the Shuntianfu government office take care of these matters?"

  "Who dares to intervene? That Jiang Xia is the current emperor's favorite, and Mr. He's wife accused him of selling medicine that killed people, and also accused him of killing someone in broad daylight. Guess how Judge Zhang ruled?"

  "How was it decided?"

  "He sentenced Mrs. He to be wrongly accused, and said that the little concubine intended to attack Jiang Xia, she should die, and Jiang Xia killed her in self-defense by mistake, without any guilt. Moreover, Mrs. He was also beaten with ten big boards, and simultaneously slapped thirty times, how miserable."

  "What a ridiculous world, a vendor of farting sounds can actually be so arrogant and unscrupulous. The current emperor is truly incompetent and muddle-headed. If the Ming dynasty continues like this, it's likely to be on the verge of collapse."

  "Shh... speak softly, don't you see the Imperial Guards over there?"

  "Hmph, he's just a dog raised by the Dog Emperor."

  Jiang Xia took out a piece of broken silver from his bosom and threw it on the table, then stood up and left. As he passed by the table where people were talking, Jiang Xia suddenly stumbled and pretended to almost fall over. He turned around and shouted: "You're blind!"

  Then he grabbed the person who said he was "selling fart eyes" and beat him up, feeling refreshed after a good fight, Jiang Xiaoyang walked away with a swagger.

  Out of the teahouse, Jiang Xia understood that this rumor was almost coming to an end. He believed that such rumors would soon spread throughout the capital and then the civil and military officials would collectively pressure Zhu Houzhao during their morning court session.

  If Zhu Houzhao didn't kill himself, then it would prove that Zhu Houzhao indeed had an unclear and inexplicable relationship with himself.

  If Zhu Houzhao killed himself, then it would be exactly as the person who set up the plot wished.

  What a formidable means, layer by layer, actually making all the people in the capital become his accomplices.

  Jiang Xia thought for a moment and then changed into new clothes at a nearby place before heading straight to Nan Cheng.

  The He family of Nancheng, this is also one of the top two or three big families in the capital. The He family rice shop is not only extremely famous in the capital, but also very well-known throughout North Zhili. Now that Old Master He has passed away, the entire He estate is naturally dressed in mourning attire, with white cloth strips tied everywhere.

  The gate of He's mansion was open, and Jiang Xia walked straight in.

  In the He manor's main hall, a beautifully carved coffin was placed. After Jiang Xia walked in, the first person to react was Mrs. He. Her husband was shocked and then ran over to Jiang Xia, shouting loudly: "What are you doing here? You murderer!"

  Jiang Xia didn't respond to her. He shook his clothes and knelt down in front of the coffin, then respectfully kowtowed three times.

  After finishing all this, Jiang Xia stood up and looked at Mrs. He, who said excitedly: "We don't need you to pretend here, get out! Get out!"

  "Right! Get out!" The others in the He estate also became enraged, and they all shouted loudly at Jiang Xia with ferocity, but not a single one of them dared to come forward and truly push him around.

  Jiang Xia looked at Mrs. He and calmly said, "I came today just to come and kowtow to Old Man He. After all, the dead are more important, I should have come. Whether or not Old Man He died from taking the Jiuyang Dan, I believe there will be a public verdict. However, no matter what he died of, it has something to do with me, so these three kowtows, he can accept."

  However, Madam He, I advise you one sentence. There is a saying that the cunning rabbit dies, the running dog is cooked, the flying bird is exhausted, and the good bow is hidden. This matter has already involved the current emperor's body, if there is any slight exposure, the people who will fall down are absolutely not one or two heads. You have the guts to continue betting, I Jiang Xia also admire your courage. However, I advise you one sentence, think carefully whether it is worth it. Even if I die, this matter passes, do you think you can still live safely as the only person who may know the truth?