The position of clan head was Tang Zijin's biggest bargaining chip to protect Aunt Ru's life. He spoke of it easily, but how could he give it up willingly? This was only a last resort, a temporary measure. At most, he'd lose the title of clan head, but he had to keep his authority firmly in his hands. After all, there were plenty of branch families and concubines in the Tang Clan eyeing the position of clan head!
Once the truth was exposed, he wouldn't be able to control the situation. Thus, even if he gave up the position, he had to keep the successor under his control.
"Why don't we use Tang Li's wedding to pass the position of clan head to Tang Li? That way, no one will suspect anything," Tang Zijin probed.
He wondered why Long Fei Ye hadn't brought Han Yunxi with him this time. First, it wasn't appropriate for Han Yunxi to know too much about the Tang Clan's internal affairs. Second, it could be considered a final show of mercy to the Tang Clan.
If Han Yunxi had been here today, then Aunt Ru would've been dead for sure! Thus, Long Fei Ye wouldn't make a big fuss about today's events.
Long Fei Ye only looked at Tang Zijin coldly without a word.
Tang Zijin was an old fox, but he'd fallen into his trap all the same.
He hadn't brought Han Yunxi with him not because he was soft-hearted towards Aunt Ru, but because he wanted to hide his East Qin identity. If Han Yunxi was here, then it'd be hard for him to say anything.
Tang Zijin had pushed Tang Li forward, but he had no idea that Tang Li's heart was no longer on his father's side after running away from the wedding.
Seeing Long Fei Ye remain silent, Tang Zijin grew uneasy and said, "Your Highness, Tang Li is marrying the head of Cloud Realm Trade Consortium. Compared to her, his status as the young clan head of the Tang Clan truly is a bit lower. If he took the position of clan head, he wouldn't be so inferior. This subordinate's concession before the wedding is perfectly justified and won't arouse suspicion. "
Hearing this, Aunt Ru finally understood that Tang Zijin was trying his best to protect her. She remained silent, not daring to speak carelessly.
"Your Highness, Aunt Ru's status is special. It really isn't appropriate to publicize this matter. As this subordinate sees it, this is a good idea," Chu Xifeng seemed to be persuading him, but he was actually helping Long Fei Ye put on an act.
Long Fei Ye had achieved his goal, but he still had to settle the score with Aunt Ru. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to explain it to Han Yunxi.
Seeing that Chu Xifeng had coaxed her, Aunt Ru finally dared to speak up. "Sister-in-law should keep that a secret too. Tang Li's about to get married, so don't make her worry."
Long Fei Ye and Mrs. Tang had a good relationship, so Aunt Ru played the emotional card.
Long Fei Ye finally relented. "You can avoid death, but you can't escape punishment!"
Aunt Ru's heart, which had been hanging in the air, finally settled back into her stomach. Tang Zijin also secretly let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you for your grace, Your Highness!"
Aunt Ru was gloomy. He'd already given up the position of clan head, but still wanted to punish her!
She was indignant, but Tang Zijin glared at her and she could only admit defeat. "Please punish me, Your Highness."
"Confine her to Returning Dragon Peak for ten years," Long Fei Ye said.
Aunt Ru almost jumped to her feet, but Tang Zijin held her back. She glared at him, but he glared back. In the end, it was still Tang Zijin who was stronger than Aunt Ru.
Aunt Ru lowered her head in despair. What else could she do besides comfort herself that she'd escaped with her life? She could only place her last hopes on Tang Zijin.
Returning Dragon Peak was a lone peak in the Reclining Dragon Range. It was the burial ground of the Tang Clan, so Long Fei Ye wanted her to guard the graves!
"Chu Xifeng, take the Kong Clan's old woman to Returning Dragon Peak. Leave a few Shadow Guards behind to keep watch." Long Fei Ye looked at Tang Zijin and asked, "Having Tang Yiru fulfill her filial piety counts as an explanation for the deaths of the Tang Clan disciples. What do you think?"
Tang Zijin couldn't retort, so he could only nod.
Aunt Ru was on the verge of tears. She wanted to cry out injustice and explain herself, but Long Fei Ye didn't want to hear any more of her nonsense. Cold, he said, "Someone come, confine Tang Yiru to Returning Dragon Peak. Without this crown prince's orders, anyone who tries to rescue her will die!"
There was no one else here, so his words were meant for Tang Zijin's ears.
Tang Zijin didn't say a word, but dragged Aunt Ru away. Not to mention Aunt Ru, even Tang Zijin himself had yet to recover from the shock. Everything had happened too suddenly.
As soon as they were out the door, Aunt Ru couldn't help but shake off his hand like a madwoman. "Big brother, I won't accept this! I won't accept this! "
Tang Zijin's face was gloomy as he grabbed her arm, but Aunt Ru shook him off again. "Big brother, how did Feiye become like this? He's … he's simply disgraceful! "
"Don't forget your own status! If you really want to die, I can help you out! " Tang Zijin warned sternly. He'd had enough. If this idiot wasn't his little sister, he would've sent her on her way long ago.
"Old Man has already lost his position as clan head to you. What else do you want? Old Man has given you his life as well. Are you satisfied now? "Tang Zijin was furious.
"Big brother, I can die! But we have to figure out Han Yunxi's identity first! "
Aunt Ru's gaze was resolute. "You're still talking?" Tang Zijin scolded. "I know what I'm doing, so there's no need for you to worry."
Tang Zijin hesitated for a long time before he said seriously, "Go say goodbye to your sister-in-law. Just say you've gone to the Northern Li snow mountains and haven't set a date for your return. Be careful with your words. If you dare to reveal a single detail about what happened today and hurt her heart, hmph, you'll have to deal with it yourself! "
Aunt Ru nodded repeatedly. She was still counting on her big brother to save her in the future, so she didn't dare to hurt her sister-in-law's heart.
After she left, Tang Zijin returned to his study and plopped heavily into a chair. He furrowed his brows and forced himself to calm down.
Aunt Ru had said so much nonsense, but she was right about one thing. They could die, but they had to figure out Han Yunxi's identity first.
To put it bluntly, they could destroy the entire Tang Clan, but they had to figure out Han Yunxi's identity first.
Aunt Ru had only eavesdropped on the Shadow Clan's affairs. She'd investigated for two years without finding anything, which made them uneasy.
If Han Yunxi really did have connections with Western Qin's imperial clan, then Feiye's heart would sink. How could he ever rise again?
Tang Zijin couldn't imagine it. Aunt Ru's fate today had been a resounding wake-up call for him. He had to be more cautious than ever. Today, he'd given up the position of clan head simply because of this matter.
He had to retreat for the sake of advancing. First, he'd dispel Feiye's suspicions, then slowly make plans for Han Yunxi. He figured that if he could help Tang Li with the Tang Clan's complicated affairs, he'd have time to plan things out properly.
Long Fei Ye ordered Chu Xifeng to keep a close eye on Aunt Ru before going to find Han Yunxi. Coincidentally, he ran into Han Yunxi coming out of her room.
"Long Fei Ye, we were wrong before. We should start with Kong Xi!" Han Yunxi said seriously. Although she couldn't make a decision yet, she'd suddenly thought of this when she woke up this morning. "We were too impatient. We still need to investigate Kong Xi slowly. Aunt Ru has to have something to use against him! We'll definitely find out! "
Long Feiye looked at Han Yunxi, his eyes filled with doting helplessness as he smiled faintly.
"What are you smiling about?" Han Yunxi asked.
"Han Yunxi," Long Fei Ye drew closer. "How about I tell you something?"
Han Yunxi was at a loss. "What?"
"Do you want to hear it or not?" Long Fei Ye asked.
Han Yunxi could only put the matter of Kong Xi aside for now. "Go ahead."
"Your lordship …" Long Fei Ye spoke very slowly. He looked seriously at Han Yunxi's face and smiled faintly. "You look pretty good when you're being silly. Mm, your lordship will allow you to be silly once in a while."
Han Yunxi was even more confused. "What do you mean?"
Long Fei Ye drew closer and hugged her gently. In a low voice, he told her everything about Aunt Ru. Besides the fact that he'd used his status as the crown prince to suppress Tang Zijin and Aunt Ru, he told her everything else.
Han Yunxi listened in a daze before she finally understood. "Okay! That's what you meant when you said you wanted to lure the snake out of its hole? "
"Mm," Long Fei Ye admitted with a nod.
"Then why did you let me make mistakes?" Han Yunxi asked angrily. She suddenly felt like she'd thought herself clever before, like a joke. She hated herself for being so silly in front of Long Fei Ye.
"At most, you were being silly, not making mistakes," Long Fei Ye smiled. "If you hadn't been silly, Aunt Ru wouldn't have trusted Chu Xifeng so quickly."
Han Yunxi looked at him, at a loss for words.
She was convinced!
This man was so elegant even when he played tricks and toyed with people! He'd calmly handled the matter and done it beautifully.
"How about we imprison Aunt Ru at Returning Dragon Peak and have her take care of Grandma Kong until she grows old?" Long Fei Ye asked.
Han Yunxi immediately nodded. "Of course!"
"Spare her life and give her a big present for Tang Li, alright?" Long Fei Ye asked next.
"Excellent!"
Han Yunxi couldn't think of a better idea. Aunt Ru's life was worth the position of Tang Clan head, so they'd profited! Aunt Ru's life wasn't worth that much.
She knew Long Fei Ye wouldn't be stingy with his present for Tang Li, but she never expected it to be so extravagant! If Tang Li knew the truth, he'd probably worship Long Fei Ye even more.
"Will we tell Tang Li the truth?" Han Yunxi asked seriously.
"Of course."
Long Fei Ye was certain. If they didn't tell Tang Li the truth, how were they supposed to let Tang Li and Tang Zijin fight for power? Han Yunxi understood at once. "This … in the end, it'll be difficult for Tang Li. With his personality, he'll feel terrible doing this."
"It's only a matter of time before he inherits the position. If he can take over Cloud Realm Trade Consortium's arms trade, he won't have to enter the tiger's den," Long Fei Ye said.
His heart was big enough to hold the world.
His heart was small, too, and couldn't hold too many people. Tang Li counted as one of them. If possible, he didn't want to make things too difficult for his younger cousin.
Tang Li inheriting the position of head of the Tang Clan was safer than being a spy in Cloud Realm Trade Consortium.
"I didn't consider that. If we can subdue Ning Jing, we really don't need to risk our lives in Cloud Realm Trade Consortium," Han Yunxi smiled.
Han Yunxi pretended not to know the truth about Aunt Ru in front of Tang Zijin and the rest. A few days later, Tang Zijin found a death row prisoner as a scapegoat to solve the case.
Han Yunxi didn't dig deeper, but cooperated with him to put on a show. Just like that, the matter passed.
As for Lady Tang, she really didn't know any of this. She only regretted that Tang Li was about to get married. If only Aunt Ru had left a little later.
Three days after Aunt Ru was imprisoned on Returning Dragon Peak, Tang Li's wedding procession set out ahead of schedule. It would take five days for a round trip, so they could bring the bride to the Tang Clan at the auspicious hour of the 28th day of the third month!
This time, Long Fei Ye and Han Yunxi only followed behind without disguising themselves as part of the procession.
The use of Han Yunxi's gold ingot was about to be revealed!
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