PCA Chapter 198

Su Cen instantly understood what gift Ning Santong had sent him.

 

He did indeed want to find Cui Hao, but not through this kind of meeting.

 

Su Cen frowned: “Let Ah Fu go. This matter has nothing to do with him.”

 

“Zhongpei is dead!” Cui Hao’s eyes were filled with blood red, his hands also stained with blood, trembling so violently that he had already left several bloody marks on Ah Fu’s neck.

 

Ah Fu truly wanted to cry. In the evening, while preparing dinner, he heard someone knocking at the door. When he opened it, he saw no one, only a large box left at the entrance. When he opened it, there was actually a living person inside, tied up tightly, with eyes glaring at him viciously.

 

Without a second thought, he had freed the person.

 

As a result, that person had pulled out a dagger and taken him hostage.

 

This was exactly like those stories the Second Young Master had told him about the scholar and the wolf, the farmer and the snake, Lü Dongbin and the dog[mfn]cautionary tales about ingratitude and betrayal[/mfn]!

 

It was all because he had dozed off while listening back then, otherwise he wouldn’t have ended up in this situation.

 

“I’m also deeply saddened by Prime Minister Liu’s death,” Su Cen said gravely. “But you can’t take your anger out on others because of it.”

 

“You said you would help him!” Cui Hao’s eyes were bloodshot, the red in them seeming ready to drip blood. “You said you would help him, which is why he told you everything. Yet you let someone come right under your nose and harm Zhongpei to death. Su Cen, everyone else might be innocent, but you absolutely cannot escape responsibility!”

 

Upon hearing that this person intended harm to his young master, Ah Fu desperately straightened his body: “Second Young Master, don’t worry about me, just run!”

 

Another bloody cut immediately appeared on his neck.

 

“Cui Hao!” Su Cen quickly said, “I bear responsibility for Prime Minister Liu’s death, but Ah Fu is innocent. You’re looking for me anyway, so let him go and I’ll trade places with him!”

 

“Brother Su!” Qu Ling’er quickly grabbed Su Cen from behind.

 

Su Cen gently patted Qu Ling’er’s hand: “He won’t kill me.”

 

After some internal struggle, Qu Ling’er finally released his grip. Su Cen stepped forward step by step until he stood face to face with Ah Fu, slowly raising his hand to move Cui Hao’s blade away slightly, then nodded to Ah Fu.

 

Ah Fu’s legs went weak and he nearly collapsed to the ground.

 

In the next instant, Cui Hao pushed Ah Fu aside and thrust the knife point straight at Su Cen!

 

Su Cen neither dodged nor avoided, watching the knife point descend until it stopped half an inch from his forehead.

 

Both Qu Ling’er and Ah Fu gasped.

 

“You won’t kill me,” Su Cen looked directly at Cui Hao. “You’re still counting on me to clear Prime Minister Liu’s name. If I die, Prime Minister Liu will have died in vain.”

 

Cui Hao gritted his teeth in hatred. He really wanted to thrust this knife down… but he couldn’t. The person who had driven Zhongpei to death hadn’t been caught yet, and the charges against Zhongpei hadn’t been cleared. If Su Cen died, no one would investigate these matters anymore.

 

“Can we go inside to talk?” Su Cen said. “If someone overhears or sees us here, it might be disadvantageous for you.”

 

Cui Hao glanced at the open courtyard gate, where he could even hear the noisy voices from neighboring courtyards. Knowing Su Cen was right, he turned the knife and placed the dagger back at Su Cen’s throat: “Move!”

 

The room was completely dark. After everyone entered, Ah Fu lit a lamp. Cui Hao held Su Cen hostage in a corner with his back to two walls, preventing anyone from attacking from behind.

 

“What did Lu Xun say to Prime Minister Liu?” Su Cen was the first to break the silence. “Why did Prime Minister Liu commit suicide?”

 

At the mention of Liu Cheng, Cui Hao’s emotions immediately fluctuated again. The sharp dagger passed several times close to Su Cen’s vital points, making Qu Ling’er and Ah Fu tremble with fear.

 

“Suicide…” Cui Hao twisted his lips into a smile that looked worse than crying. “How desperate must he have been to choose suicide!”

 

“Didn’t you always want to know why Zhongpei became the top scholar that year?” Tears welled in Cui Hao’s bloodshot eyes as he took a deep breath to continue. “Because… because Zhongpei was obedient. He said they decided to keep him only because Zhongpei was obedient!”

 

Cui Hao seemed to hear some amusing joke, burying his head and laughing heartbreakingly. Those tears finally burst forth, winding down his cheeks like two hideous scars. When he raised his head again, his gaze was suddenly vicious: “They clearly threatened Zhongpei to kill Tian Pingzhi, but after Tian Pingzhi died by accident, they thought Zhongpei had been ruthless! Zhongpei had already submitted a blank paper, wanting to stay away from disputes, but they insisted on keeping him, just to have an obedient puppet with leverage over him for their use!”

 

Cui Hao took several deep breaths to suppress his overwhelming anger. Even Su Cen, who was being held hostage, could feel that deep despair. If someone told him his top scholar title also came from a conspiracy, that his moment of glory was the beginning of a nightmare, with his temperament, he probably wouldn’t have lasted this long and would have chosen mutual destruction and self-liberation long ago.

 

Cui Hao leaned back gently against the wall, his gaze finally softening somewhat: “The first time I saw Zhongpei was at the Qinglin Banquet—high above others, distinguished and extraordinary. I respected and admired him, but when I got close to him, I discovered he wasn’t as glorious as he appeared on the surface. So I decided I would love him.”

 

Deep sorrow flowed out after the anger, so thick it was suffocating.

 

“He originally had a peaceful nature, but people kept forcing him to compete for this and that. He knew the former emperor wasn’t a wise ruler, and Empress Dowager Chu wasn’t a wise master either, but what could he do? He just wanted to survive! He had so many desires he couldn’t fulfill. He knew sometimes Li Shi was right, but what could he do? What could he do?!”

 

“He was once a young man of unparalleled grace, who once had the passionate desire to serve the state, dreaming that one day he could hold office and petition for the common people.” Cui Hao pressed his lips tightly, his words bone-chillingly cold: “In this court, his talents were utterly useless.”

 

Su Cen lowered his eyes slightly: “It’s this court that wronged him. The Great Zhou failed Prime Minister Liu.”

 

“He finally did one thing that followed his own wishes,” Cui Hao’s gaze suddenly turned fierce, “but I can’t let him die so resentfully! He wanted to die to protect you all, then I’ll drag you all to accompany Zhongpei in death!”

 

Su Cen’s brow furrowed. Cui Hao was extremely emotionally unstable now. This matter involved many people, and he couldn’t let Cui Hao act recklessly. He consoled: “Trust me, I will give Prime Minister Liu justice.”

 

“Why should I trust you?” Cui Hao’s gaze turned vicious, the blade suddenly tightening at Su Cen’s throat. “You’re the one who killed Zhongpei!”

 

Su Cen said softly: “Because Prime Minister Liu trusted me.”

 

Cui Hao’s voice caught, and his hand suddenly paused.

 

Zhongpei had indeed trusted Su Cen and had once praised Su Cen’s abilities. He trusted Zhongpei’s judgment, otherwise he wouldn’t have deliberately shown a weakness to Ning San and had Ning San send him back.

 

Su Cen knew Prime Minister Liu was Cui Hao’s weak spot. Seeing him finally stabilize, he continued: “Since the Great Zhou owes Prime Minister Liu, it should naturally pay the price. I promise you, Prime Minister Liu won’t die in vain. But you must also promise me not to act impulsively and play into certain people’s hands.”

 

Cui Hao frowned and struggled for a long time before finally looking at Su Cen and asking: “Can I still trust you?”

 

“Tomorrow, in the very court where Prime Minister Liu once stood, I will give an account of everything,” Su Cen glanced at the dagger at his throat. “If you don’t trust me, you can kill me now.”

 

Cui Hao was silent for another moment before saying: “Then tomorrow, I want to go with you.”

 

Su Cen hesitated briefly. No matter what, that was the imperial palace after all. How easy would it be to bring a living person in, especially someone who should have left the capital long ago?

 

After thinking it through, Su Cen nodded lightly.

 

A moment later, Cui Hao slowly released his grip, and the dagger clattered to the ground.

 

Actually, Su Cen had long seen that Cui Hao was at the end of his rope, sustained only by anger. Once that dissipated, he wouldn’t even have the strength to hold a knife.

 

Cui Hao stared blankly in the corner, softly humming some tune that could be recognized as a northern folk song.

 

Su Cen vaguely remembered that Cui Hao was from Hongzhou, a true southerner, while Liu Cheng was from Youzhou, near the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun, where nomadic peoples would hum such tunes while herding sheep.

 

The spirited young man who had entered Chang’an never managed to leave.

 

Seeing him completely lower his guard, Su Cen suddenly moved, grabbing the dagger from the ground and tossing it to Qu Ling’er.

 

Qu Ling’er caught the dagger and with swift, ghostly movements, stepped forward and instantly brought Cui Hao under his control.

 

Cui Hao: “!”

 

The situation had completely reversed!

 

Su Cen pressed his lips together: “I will definitely do what I promised, but now I must go see someone.”

 

“Su Cen, you!” Cui Hao struggled a few times but didn’t even have the strength to stand up. He glared viciously at Su Cen, wishing he could tear him apart alive.

 

“Ling’er, I’m leaving this to you.”

 

Qu Ling’er nodded, “Brother Su, go ahead.”

 

Su Cen ran a few steps toward the exit, then turned back, “Before dawn, I will definitely return.”

 

Before Cui Hao could react, Su Cen had already plunged into the night.

 

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