Backlash Part 1

Chapter 148: The Mistake of Langya

Wen Qing stared at the book in front of her. She was almost certain that she was compromised. She had managed to piece together that the major attack she had warned about, was a very small skirmish. Furthermore many of the allied sects' cultivators had rushed to Langya, presumably based on her intelligence, which left Jiangling poorly defended for the attack that assaulted them on the same day.

There was a tiny chance that plans had changed and Meng Yao did not bother to tell her. After all, did she need to know where the influx of new prisoners were coming from? No. There was no reason she should be informed. Except, with only two days notice it seemed unlikely they would change the target at the last minute.

That left Wen Qing with the very unsettling realization that the false information was given on purpose. Someone trying to root out a spy, by giving out the false information and seeing if it reached the allied sects. Wen Qing felt cold. She got the information from Meng Yao. Was it Meng Yao who was suspected and given the bad information?

Wen Qing almost scoffed at herself. That was depressingly unlikely. Meng Yao was the Principle Torturer and Wen Rouhan's closest advisor. Even if someone suspected him of being a spy, accusing him of such a thing would be tantamount to suicide. The number of people Wen Rouhan might believe over Meng Yao was low. Wen Qing also did not really think Wen Rouhan would be all that subtle if he suspected someone of being a spy.

No. If Wen Rouhan thought Meng Yao was a spy, Meng Yao would not still be in charge of the Flame Palace. If Meng Yao had any doubts in his trust of Meng Yao, Meng Yao would not be in a position of power until Wen Rouhan found proof. Which meant that Meng Yao was probably the one giving out the false information. That was ironic, given that Meng Yao was a spy.

Wen Qing laced her fingers together, pressing her hands palm to palm to keep herself from fidgeting with them. What were the odds that Meng Yao had dropped the information to more than one person at a time? Was it a collection of people he suspected? Or was it only her, and she had given herself away by not considering that she should try and verify the information before sending it.

Technically, Meng Yao should not have a reason to want to expose her. They were spies for the same person. Wen Qing really wanted to believe that Meng Yao would not benefit from exposing her. Wen Qing let out a deep sigh. Who was she kidding? Meng Yao could find a benefit in exposing her.

Meng Yao could have been worried that his contributions would be lessened by having someone else also giving the allies information. It could be that Wen Rouhan suspected a spy, and so Meng Yao would turn her over as said spy rather than risk suspicion falling to him. Cautiously Wen Qing even acknowledged that Meng Yao was doing quite well for himself in the QishanWen sect. He might want Wen Qing out of the way so he could exclusively control what information the allied sects received.

Wen Qing opened the book in front of her with a light press of spiritual energy. Maybe she could send Wen Qionglin to one of the camps. Maybe if she could give them details about the Dafan area, they might consider taking Dafan next. It made Wen Qing feel uneasy to ask for help at this stage. She wasn't certain she had provided enough to earn her family's safety. Not to mention she had given them bad information recently.

Wen Qing flipped to the last page with writing. It was an old message, so Wen Qing turned to the next clean page and began to write. She would admit that she had not thought to double check the information about Langya. She would apologize for the oversight. That was somewhere to start.

Wen Qing waited for a bit after she completed that. Wondering what to say next. Wondering if it would make a difference to say that she believed she was compromised. If she asked them to go to Dafan, would they answer? If she asked Lan Xichen to at least pass a message to Wei Wuxian, would he do it? Lan Xichen was kind, but she did not put it past him to withhold information if he thought that information would put Lan Wangji in danger. If Lan Xichen thought Wei Wuxian would run off to Dafan without support, dragging Lan Wangji into danger with him... Wen Qing couldn't exactly fault Lan Xichen if he did hold back a request for help in Dafan to protect his didi.

Before Wen Qing made up her mind she saw a response appear on the paper before her. It was a softly worded acknowledgement. Lan Xichen was kind and his answer reflected that. Acknowledging that the attack on Jiangling was a painful loss, but appreciating Wen Qing's intent in trying to warn them of a threat she had believed to be true. Lan Xichen did not dwell on the topic much, instead informing her that he would be leaving for Yangquan beginning tomorrow. He expected to be busy for a while and may not have time to write, but he would do his best to check for messages if she had anything she felt they needed to know.

Wen Qing could have told him she thought she might be exposed. She could have made the request for them to take Dafan as soon as possible. Her village would have a great deal of medical supplies and taking Dafan would cut off any further medicines from being sent to Qishan from there.

Wen Qing set her brush down and prepared for bed. She could try and get information about Yangquan tomorrow. Maybe she could arrange for Wen Qionglin to meet up with Wei Wuxian near there. A bit risky, but Wen Qing knew Wei Wuxian would do everything he could to protect their family. Wei Wuxian had a lot of power on a battlefield. If anyone could get Wen Qionglin to the allied sects safely, it would be Wei Wuxian.

Wen Qing gently traced the grooves in the carved jade of the jinbu Wei Wuxian had gifted her. Wei Wuxian said it would offer them some protection, and it would let him know if they were in danger. Wen Qing wished she had asked more detailed questions about how it did that, and exactly what it did overall. Wei Wuxian seemed to either talk too much about something or not enough. He might spend hours prattling on about the minutia of growing Lotus flowers, and removing resentment from soil. Then completely forget to tell you what the talisman he just handed to you does.

Wen Qing made an annoyed and exasperated sound and pretended she wasn't terribly fond of her oldest didi. The stories in Qishan about Wei Wuxian's armies of the dead did not mention any tools besides Chenqing. He had probably not used the Yin Hufu yet. She hoped he would not have to. Wei Wuxian kept Chenqing close to him, because it helped keep him safe. The same way he would keep Suibian close, now that he had his golden core. Wei Wuxian had never been eager to keep the Yin Hufu near him. It was something he did to protect other people from it. Wen Qing was quite certain Wei Wuxian would feel safer if the Yin Hufu never existed.

Wen Qing dearly wished they could not use that tool. If he hadn't used it yet, maybe they could still get through the war without it. Wen Qing would do her best to find information about Yangquan tomorrow. Maybe she'd be able to learn something helpful. Something to balance the mistake she made regarding Langya. Maybe enough that the allied sects would have enough of a strategic advantage to win without the Yin Hufu.