Lu Qing Wan tutted, "Is this another of Feng Qing Heng's death-seeking tricks?"
"It should be said that he only has this one kind of death-seeking trick."
Lian Yu added from the side, "At first, he threatened the former emperor with the state and the empire, then he threatened you and the prince with each other, and now he's threatening Consort Shao with the Grand Princess and the County Princess. He shouldn't have any other moves left, right?"
"That's true."
The group resumed their seats. Lu Qing Wan directly asked, "You know that the Grand Princess and the County Princess didn't travel to the northwest with you, Consort. How did they end up being detained by Feng Qing Heng? When did his reach extend to the northwest?"
Consort Shao shook his head with a grim expression, "This year, it was very cold in the northwest, and it snowed several times. The Grand Princess and Min Min were a bit afraid of the cold, so I sent people to escort them back to the capital to spend the winter. Who would have thought that after they had been back in the capital for only six or seven days, Feng Qing Heng would send me a secret edict ordering me to intercept you and seize the Xuan Jia Army's command?"
Consort Shao was extremely angered. A high-ranking official in charge of a region was pushed to this point by the emperor he served. He felt both wronged and furious.
"I've inquired through people. The Grand Princess is neither at the Princess's residence nor in the palace. To threaten me with them, Feng Qing Heng must have hidden them. I was afraid that if I made too much noise, Feng Qing Heng would be like a cornered dog, so I could only investigate secretly. But to this day, I haven't found any leads."
Feng Xi Wu, seeing Consort Shao's self-blame, spoke words of comfort to the elder who was both his mentor and friend. "Consort, you did the right thing. Feng Qing Heng wants to use them to threaten you. As long as you don't act rashly, they will be safe. If you alert him, he might indeed lash out in desperation, which would be detrimental to both the Grand Princess and Princess Fu Jia."
Consort Shao, who had navigated the treacherous waters of officialdom for over twenty years, was no stranger to great storms. Although he was worried about the safety of his wife and daughter and angered by Feng Qing Heng's despicable threats, his reason remained intact.
Hearing this, he nodded in agreement, "It is precisely because I understand this that I chose to cooperate with you two. I promise here that as long as you two help me rescue my wife and daughter, I will ensure that no harm comes to the people of Da Qian. When you two take over Da Qian, the soldiers and civilians in my jurisdiction will greet you with open arms, and I will not cause any trouble for your grand undertaking."
Lu Qing Wan blinked in surprise. She could understand why Chi Yao Yao and the Chi family members were disappointed in Feng Qing Heng. But Consort Shao was a member of the imperial clan of Da Qian. To so easily pledge allegiance to her and Feng Xi Wu, was Feng Qing Heng too unpopular, or did Consort Shao have other intentions?
As she was contemplating this, Feng Xi Wu said humbly, "Consort Shao, I am very pleased by your intention. However, Feng Qing Heng has always been wary of me. After I left the capital, the forces remaining in Shang Jing were largely driven away by Feng Qing Heng. Now, to rescue the Grand Princess and Princess Fu Jia, I fear we will need the Princess Consort's help."
After Feng Xi Wu and Lu Qing Wan left, Feng Qing Heng, out of his hatred for the two, purged all the factions they could dismantle. However, he was unable to touch Ji Ci Hospital. The hospital, which occupied a considerable area in Shang Jing, had already become a spiritual pillar for the people in and around the city. For headaches, fevers, broken limbs, and sprains, they only trusted Ji Ci Hospital. Feng Qing Heng did not want to shut down Ji Ci Hospital, but each time he tried to act, the patients would cause a disturbance first. After several such incidents, Feng Qing Heng could only give up the idea of closing Ji Ci Hospital. Consort Shao, who never lacked connections, should have known this. He also knew that Feng Xi Wu could not be without allies in Shang Jing. This was clearly a favor for Lu Qing Wan, and it was a harmless one that everyone tacitly understood.
Consort Shao smoothly went along with it, "In that case, we will trouble the Princess Consort."
"No problem."
Lu Qing Wan readily nodded, "Coincidentally, my people are going to rescue Prime Minister Wen, the Chi family, and the Nán King's residence. I don't mind adding the Grand Princess and Princess Fu Jia to the list. Please leave your contact information, Consort Shao. If there's any news, I'll have someone notify you immediately."
Her forthrightness stunned Consort Shao. "Princess Consort, are there no other conditions?"
Lu Qing Wan smiled generously, "What I want, Consort Shao has already agreed to. Moreover, when Feng Qing Heng deliberately made things difficult for my husband and me under false pretenses, didn't you also help our couple? What my husband and I are doing now is merely returning the favor. Consort Shao, you don't need to be so polite."
"What a fitting return of favor!" Consort Shao roared with laughter. "The Prince has married a good Princess Consort, why worry that his great cause will not succeed!"
Feng Xi Wu had a look of pride, like a pleased child. Lu Qing Wan found it amusing. "Have the things you asked me to prepare been gathered?"
"They've been ready for a long time." Feng Xi Wu tilted his head, and Lian Yu promptly brought out the prepared items. "Here is the plan for the distribution of grain and fodder for the Northern Wei army. But what do you want this for?"
"I have my own use for it. You all chat slowly, I'll excuse myself." She left gracefully with a stack of ledgers, leaving the people in the room bewildered.
Consort Shao chuckled, shaking his head. "People say the Prince is a master of war, but it seems the Princess Consort is no less capable." Using the grain and fodder distribution plan of the Northern Wei cavalry as a basis, although no one knew exactly what she planned to do, her approach was certainly not ordinary.
Feng Xi Wu smiled dotingly. "If you're not family, you don't enter the same door. Enough about her. Consort Shao, let's continue."
Consort Shao would not have personally come just to ask Feng Xi Wu and Lu Qing Wan to rescue someone. Since he was here, there were important matters to attend to.
Meanwhile, on the other side, the abacus beads in Lu Qing Wan's hands were flying, the pitter-patter sound echoing endlessly. After a while, Lu Qing Wan suddenly slammed the abacus onto the table. "I should have asked Zhi Qiu to come. This blasted thing is giving me a headache to calculate!"
When Li Su returned with Da Bai, he saw Lu Qing Wan with her hair disheveled, looking like she was about to give up. He couldn't help but laugh. "Princess Consort, Zhi Qiu is busy with the year-end accounts right now and doesn't have time to help you with this mess."
"If this mess is sorted out, she can relax for at least a year!" Lu Qing Wan said, looking up and seeing Da Bai. Her face lit up with joy. "Why did you come back so soon? Did you find all the places you were looking for?"
Da Bai meowed and jumped in front of her. With its meows, it transmitted all the intelligence to Lu Qing Wan's brain. At the same time, on the white paper of the desk in the spatial laboratory, complete records of the locations and guard situations of the secret treasuries appeared. Although it was only a small part near Tian Xuan City, it at least told Lu Qing Wan that she could indeed rely on the beast army to obtain this intelligence. Moreover, the timeliness was quite guaranteed. Teng She had not yet returned, which meant that the search for secret treasuries was still ongoing. Lu Qing Wan petted Da Bai for a while, then let it out again to search for secret treasuries, and continued to wrestle with the ledgers herself.