The Rebirth of an Ill-Fated Consort (Chapters 1- 203)

Chapter 177 : Xia Family's Downfall

Translated by : Minodayz

Edited by : Anks & Ely

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Qi Feng shook his head when he heard her question. By this point, even the Jinyi Guards had completely cast him aside, their military advisor, to the back of their minds and were wholeheartedly committed to Jiang Ruan and fulfilling her tasks. Just like when they had not given him so much as an inkling as to what they were doing after Jiang Ruan had Jin Er select a few secret guards to infiltrate Xia Jun's posse of men to instigate a clash with the city garrison guards. If Qi Feng had known earlier about Jiang Ruan's plan, most likely he would have prevented it from happening. He was used to having a full grasp and complete understanding of the whole stratagem, whereas Jiang Ruan's strategies were like interconnecting links with high risk. To even concoct such an audacious plan, even in retrospect, Qi Feng could not help feeling an overwhelming sense of disbelief and shock. And now she was even asking if he knew the whereabouts of those eight hundred wagons of military provisions. Qi Feng was absolutely flabbergasted. In all honesty, he too was unsure about the whereabouts of those wagons because this was no small number and Xuan Li could not have been able to dispatch them out of the capital so swiftly. As for storing them at another location, the capital was only so big, and if there was an investigation, it would only be a matter of time before they were found. So how could Xuan Li be so stupid as to hold on to such incriminating evidence?

"Eight hundred is not a small number," Jiang Ruan languidly continued, "Many years ago, Xuan Li dug a secret passageway that extends out about 500 meters from the capital. There, he has arranged his own relay station to help him dispatch the provisions out to other places. If I am not wrong, my guess would be that the military provisions are currently sitting there."

All of a sudden, Qi Feng hastily stood up, unable to hide the shock in his eyes, "What did you say?!"

He was well aware that Xuan Li had his own relay station just outside of the capital and a few years back the Jinyi Guards found out about this place through their investigation. But there was not a whiff of this secret passageway and yet Jiang Ruan had spoken resolutely[1] as if it was a known fact. At this juncture, Qi Feng's heart became ever more suspicious. He glared pointedly at Jiang Ruan, "Is what you've said true?"

[1] 斩钉截铁 (zhǎndīngjiétiě) – lit. to chop the nail and slice the iron (idiom); fig. resolute and decisive / unhesitating / categorical.

"Absolutely, and if you do not believe me, you can have your own men go investigate." Jiang Ruan replied.

"How did you come by this information?" Qi Feng doggedly pursued his line of questions, "The Jinyi Guards and Bai Zhang Lou don't even know about this. Third Sister-in-law, please do not deceive me, but what is your relationship with Xuan Li? If there really is a secret passageway, then why hasn't there ever been any hint of such a place? Even if Xuan Li was able to keep everything under wraps, there is still no way to not leave any trace."

"There is not a trace because he has never used it." Contrary to Qi Feng's anxiousness, Jiang Ruan remained completely unperturbed, to the point that she could be described as tranquil. Her smile was shallow, yet every word she said was like a hammer forcibly battering Qi Feng's heart. She continued, "The secret passageway has been there for many years but back then it was a mining tunnel abandoned by a wealthy merchant. When Xuan Li found out about it, he had the tunnel enlarged and extended out beyond the city but he has never used it before as it is just a backup plan[2]. It is there for the day when it can be used to aid his grand ambition, and as it so happens, it has come into use earlier than expected." Jiang Ruan gave a halfhearted smile as she looked at Qi Feng, "As for your question regarding how I have come about this information, sadly I am unable to tell you. However, Young Master Qi, you can be rest assured that now that I have entered the Jinying Wangfu, from this day forth, I will protect the Jinying Wangfu with my life and will not do anything that would cause harm to the Wangfu. Since you and I are on the same side, why should you be anxious?"