diskusbooks Chapter 201 Persuasion
Chapter 201 Persuasion
"Okay, I understand. What are you going to do with the human skin?"
"General Qiao Yuanshan has been suppressing the news for months, and the barbarians still don't know about the situation of the Wuxian barbarians. This is, in my opinion, a perfect opportunity." Wei Fuguang held up three fingers. "I previously secretly investigated the identities of the Wuxian barbarians and selected three of them to create fake human skins. I had planned to wait for the right opportunity to send three secret guards into the barbarian land. Now... everything is ready, except for the east wind."
As he spoke, Wei Fuguang pointed toward the cell and whispered to Bai Zhi, "May it be an offense, Miss Bai, but I've heard that Yang Jinlang has always had feelings for you. If you could persuade him to write a personal letter of confession, and with the help of the secret guards I've prepared, and report everything to His Majesty for your decision, it would be a relief for His Majesty. As far as I know, his father has disappeared since entering the barbarian land, and may have been held hostage by the barbarians. Miss Bai could use this as an excuse to pry open his stubborn mouth."
Bai Zhi wanted to refuse immediately: "Master Wei, you are colleagues, so of course you are better than me..."
"I pretended to be crazy and stupid in front of Yang Jinlang to test his nerves. Now I've shown my true colors. The contrast is huge. I don't think Yang Jinlang will trust me anymore. It would be better for Miss Bai to come. Don't worry, Miss Bai. I've had people whispering our victory news to him for days. I think his defenses will collapse at the first blow."
After saying this, Wei Fuguang ignored Bai Zhi's next words and bowed deeply before saying, "Miss Bai has something to discuss with Lord Yang. I cannot be here with you. I will take my leave."
Then he took out a key from his sleeve and slapped it into Baizhi's hand, then he slipped out through the door he came in through as if he had greased his feet.
Bai Zhi: "..."
Okay, since she has been forced to do this, she should get to work. The sooner she works, the sooner the war will end, and she can also take Chu Yunchuan and the two children home sooner.
Bai Zhi held the key tightly, walked to the prison door, and unfastened the lock on the door without saying a word. Yang Jinlang's ears moved slightly when he heard the sound of the lock being unlocked.
She found some relatively clean straw and spread it out, then sat cross-legged in front of Yang Jinlang and said straight to the point, "You heard what we just said, right? Please help me write a letter of apology to Ge Zhen so that these three secret guards can enter the barbarian land safely."
There was no greeting at all. This man was not only a traitor who made her unable to live a stable life, but also shamelessly slandered her mother. If she didn't curse him first, she would be considered well-educated.
Yang Jinlang remained motionless, as if deaf. Seeing this, Bai Zhi sat closer and whispered, "I heard your old father is being held captive by the barbarians. If our secret guards can infiltrate the barbarian land, it won't be difficult for them to help you find your father."
After a brief pause, and hearing Yang Jinlang's noticeably rapid breathing, Bai Zhi adopted a nonchalant tone and said lightly, "I've got your message across. If you don't want to write, that's fine. Just ask Lord Wei to find an expert at handwriting imitation. But if I do that, I might as well kill your father if I see him, let alone help you find him."
Ordinary people don't care about the saying that the harm done to traitors should not extend to their family members. If the identities of the traitors among those who passed the cinnabar exam were not hidden from the public, the Yang family's house in Qing County would have been looted long ago, not to mention the lives of his parents.
Yang Jinlang finally tilted his head, and his eyelids, which were sticky with blood, barely opened, staring at Bai Zhi. The hatred and resentment in his eyes were as real as if he had driven out an evil ghost with sharp claws and a bloody mouth.
Bai Zhi frowned and asked in confusion, "What? Did I offend you?"
After a while, Yang Jinlang turned back again and said in a hoarse voice, "I have a condition."
"tell me the story."
"Bring my father out safely."
"I will tell Lord Wei."
"Don't hold me responsible for the crime of treason."
"It depends on what King Jing decides."
Yang Jinlang laughed softly, as if hearing a joke. "Baizhi, why are you pretending? As the King Jing's concubine, do you think your words have the final say? Power, fame, money, isn't that what you wanted to get close to the King Jing for?"
"Really? That's the first time I've heard of that." Bai Zhi thought he wasn't thinking straight, so she ignored him and said a few perfunctory words. Then she asked, "Any other conditions?"
Yang Jinlang was silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke in a hoarse voice, recounting the past: "When the former King Jing had just been rehabilitated and my family returned to Qing County, I saw you there. You were covered in grease, squatting in front of your Wenxiang Tower, selling roast chicken, laughing as you sold, like a fool."
Baizhi had no idea what he was up to, so she just listened quietly without saying a word.
"That year I had just passed the imperial examination and was very proud of myself. I wanted to become an official, so I studied hard at home every day. My mother told me to get married first and then start a career, but I didn't want to. How can a man always think about love affairs?"
At this point, Bai Zhi was almost certain he was just complaining unilaterally. She scratched her brow helplessly and listened resignedly—this man had reached such a state of misery, if he couldn't even complain, then the letter of apology would be in jeopardy too.
"Two years later, mother took it upon herself to go find Mrs. Lu to propose marriage for me. I don't know how this old woman managed to find you, who didn't want to marry outside the family but only wanted a son-in-law. When mother heard that you were the county magistrate's adopted daughter, she asked me to meet you first, saying that if I could marry into the county magistrate's family, it would be a good thing. I couldn't persuade mother, so I had to agree to meet you..."
The next sentence was barely uttered through gritted teeth: "Just this one meeting has ruined my life."
Bai Zhi: "..."
It seemed that this man was quite sentimental, but Bai Zhi could not understand what he was sentimental about at all. She sighed silently - God knows, she did nothing, so you can't blame her.
The sigh was a bit loud, and Yang Jinlang, who was immersed in his thoughts, heard it. He suddenly stretched out a withered hand to grab the hem of Bai Zhi's clothes, struggled to stand up, and roared hoarsely: "You keep saying that you just want to live an ordinary and free life, but the relationship behind you is unclear and unclear. On the one hand, you are hooking up with King Jing, and on the other hand, you have a connection with that vicious woman Ge Zhen. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have ended up like this! Bai Zhi, who the hell are you!"
The force of the tug on the hem of her clothes was unexpectedly strong, nearly causing Bai Zhi to fall. She pinched Yang Jinlang's wrist to steady her, and said inexplicably, "Do you think that Ge Zhen targeted you to work for her because of that meeting with me?"
"Is not it?"
"So your father was taken to Mandi because of our meeting?" Bai Zhi thought it was ridiculous and laughed out loud. She shook off his hand and continued without waiting for his reply, "Don't be ridiculous. You've done so many things for Ge Zhen. Don't you know what kind of person she is? She needs a reason to target people? Do you think you can get away with all this trouble today just because we don't know each other?"
"Shut up! Shut up!" Yang Jinlang suddenly went berserk, crawling on the ground and screaming miserably, "If it weren't for you! How would I have ended up like this today!"