TGCFNM -Chapter 197 The Noble Families Must Be Eliminated

After Wan Sanjin successfully recruited someone and returned, Qinglong also cupped his hands in farewell and left, looking as if he didn’t want to linger.

Wan Sanjin sat down, watching Qinglong’s brisk retreating figure, and asked curiously, “Master, did you trick him out of money again?”

Chu Ling shook her head decisively, widening her eyes. “Not this time.”

Xiao Hua gently set down the hot tea and sat as well, looking at Chu Ling. “Master, did Qinglong just think I poisoned the tea? Why was he looking at me like that?”

“Afraid, probably,” Chu Ling guessed.

Xiao Hua let out an “oh” and smiled happily. “That’s good then.”

Wan Sanjin chuckled, patting Xiao Hua’s hair bun, then looked at Chu Ling. “By the way, Master, how did you recognize Qinglong?”

Chu Ling exhaled in exasperation and pointed at his neck with disdain. “He has a Qinglong-pattern tattoo here—who couldn’t tell?”

Wan Sanjin let out a deep sigh, his expression a little disapproving. “Brother Qinglong, you really are hopeless…”

Chu Ling brought over a cup of tea and looked at Wan Sanjin. “We’re almost ready. Go call Su He; we’re going to examine the corpse.”

Wan Sanjin nodded, sipped his tea, and then went to find Su He. Xiao Hua went downstairs to prepare as well.

Ghost Scholar turned to Chu Ling when he had a moment. “Prince Rui certainly intends to use you, but with his protection, your work becomes somewhat easier.”

“Master, do you remember when Young Lord Xiao tried to win me over?” Chu Ling asked.

Ghost Scholar nodded.

“If the future emperor ends up being Young Lord Xiao, should I abandon the shadows and switch allegiance to him?” Chu Ling asked, a little anxious.

Ghost Scholar pondered for a moment and said, “I don’t know why you ask, but if it were me, I wouldn’t think Young Lord Xiao is more suitable than Prince Rui.”

“Why not?” Chu Ling asked curiously. “Young Lord Xiao could be the future emperor!”

Ghost Scholar lightly tapped his fan. “There’s only one reason.”

Chu Ling leaned forward, expression serious. “Do tell.”

“I remember Sanjin mentioning that Young Lord Xiao and Sun Taifu’s granddaughter, Sun Yingshou, are mutually fond of each other and are planning to break off the engagement with your elder sister, Chu Yue. Right?” Ghost Scholar said.

Chu Ling nodded.

Ghost Scholar shook his head slightly and sighed. “Everyone thinks Young Lord Xiao chose Sun Taifu’s family—renowned and influential—not to rely on the noble families. But I don’t think that’s the case. I believe Young Lord Xiao did it deliberately, to leave space around himself.”

Chu Ling frowned in thought for a moment, then hesitated. “Sun Taifu is influential and well-connected, so Sun Yingshou is suitable to be empress. And the other four noble families are at each other’s throats. If one of them became empress, it would disrupt the balance, so they are better suited as one of the four consorts.”

Ghost Scholar nodded appreciatively.

Chu Ling shook her head slightly, frowning in silent disbelief: Xiao Lengjue is thinking that far ahead? Already arranging positions in his harem?!

Ghost Scholar continued: “Although the General’s Mansion has been sealed, its prestige in the army remains. Abandoning the General’s Mansion means giving up military support—a move no ambitious person would make. Yet Young Lord Xiao gave it up. Why would he do that?”

“Feign giving up, but in truth, seize the opportunity!” Chu Ling slammed her hand hard on the stone table, her fingers aching from the force. “He dissolved his engagement with Chu Yue to test whether the General’s Mansion would hold him accountable. If they insisted, he could allow only a secondary consort position.”

Ghost Scholar clapped his hands in delight and laughed heartily: “Exactly, exactly!”

Chu Ling stared in shock, stunned: “The General’s Mansion is now feared by everyone, so the only savior for the mansion is Young Master Xiao.”

Ghost Scholar nodded: “Yes, only Young Master Xiao. That’s why he’s almost guaranteed to win.”

Chu Ling looked at Ghost Scholar cautiously. “You don’t favor Young Master Xiao, not because he’s cunning, but because he intends to use the power of the aristocratic families to ascend the throne, and later, he will inevitably rely on them.”

Ghost Scholar nodded solemnly, his expression serious: “If Great Zhou wants to be reborn, the aristocratic families must be uprooted. Even if they can’t be completely eradicated, they must be severely weakened—so much so that it would take a hundred years for them to recover.”

Chu Ling finally understood why Ghost Scholar favored Prince Rui over Young Master Xiao.

She had been opposing the aristocratic families all along, repeatedly attempting to overthrow the powerful elites. Prince Rui not only tacitly approved but even offered help.

So if Prince Rui ascended the throne smoothly, the aristocratic families would be in peril.

Ghost Scholar continued, “Besides Prince Rui, there is also Prince Su, and Prince He, who left for his fief long ago. Prince He has no interest in the throne. Prince Su and Prince Rui are still competing, and both being royalty, having endured the aristocratic families’ control, they will definitely strike at them. But Young Master Xiao seeks cooperation, so in the short term, his chances are the greatest. As you said, he really might ascend the throne.”

“But you don’t want Young Master Xiao to ascend,” Chu Ling said.

Ghost Scholar nodded firmly. “The aristocratic families must be eliminated!”

Chu Ling made up her mind: “I agree with you. The aristocratic families must be destroyed. Even if total eradication is impossible, they must at least be dealt a crippling blow.”

She had to change the ending of the book. She absolutely could not let Xiao Lengjue become emperor. Otherwise, even if someone else took the throne, Great Zhou would face the same outcome.

Bai Su, standing nearby, also said, “The aristocratic families have committed countless crimes; they should have been eliminated long ago.”

Cui Xi, half-squatting while holding Wangcai and playing, chimed in when she heard them finish: “Miss, didn’t you also steal the tiger tally from the General’s Mansion? You took it all, so others shouldn’t be able to gain support from the army, right?”

Chu Ling’s hand stiffened on the edge of her cup. “I not only stole the official silver, I also took the tiger tally… What was I thinking? Did I intend to rebel?”

Ghost Scholar couldn’t help laughing and lightly tapped her head with his fan. “Rebel? With what would you rebel?”

Chu Ling thought silently, “True… but why did I take the tiger tally anyway?”

Bai Su, surprised, pinched Chu Ling’s chin and asked, “Is the General’s Mansion only temporarily besieged and untouched because the tiger tally was accidentally lost?”

Chu Ling laughed awkwardly twice: “Not exactly…”

Ghost Scholar tapped the table lightly: “It might be because of the tiger tally, or maybe not. No one can be certain now. But in any case… the tiger tally is extremely dangerous. Maybe you should contact the Wan family and return it.”

“I—I almost hanged myself. I don’t quite remember where I hid the tiger tally and the official silver,” Chu Ling said, lowering her eyes toward Cui Xi playing with the dog.

Cui Xi looked up, innocently: “I don’t know where you hid them either, Miss.”

Chu Ling threw up her hands in resignation: “I’m doomed!”

“Doomed?!” Wan Sanjin, having finished tidying up, came over and called out to Chu Ling, “Madam, it’s time to go.”

Chu Ling rose, letting out a deep sigh: “For now, that’s settled. First, we deal with the matters in Dongle City…” As for the capital, that can wait for another time.