“Killing two birds with one stone.” Hua Ren gasped in realisation.
“Exactly." Sheng Fei replied with a quiet chuckle. "But that’s if the birds let themselves get crushed by the stone." He then carefully applied the medicine to Hua Ren’s wound, his touch light and gentle.
“What do you mean?” Hua Ren frowned, his eyes narrowing. Were the Pei and Lu families planning something to hurt His Majesty?
“Think about it, General,” Sheng Fei said. “Do you think an old snake like Pei Lian and a crafty fox like Lu Wen will just sit back and let the Emperor frame them? No. I’m certain they’re already scheming, planning their next move.”
Hua Ren’s gaze darkened. “Then the Emperor’s plan might not go as smoothly as he hopes."
“Oh it definitely shouldn’t.” Sheng Fei said, securing the fresh bandages snugly around Hua Ren’s shoulder. He glanced up, his golden eyes meeting Hua Ren’s with a glimmer of excitement. “We don’t want the Emperor’s problems being solved. In fact, the more problems he has, the better for us which is why we are going to make sure that the Pei and Lu families plan succeed."
Hua Ren gazed at him, his expression incredulous. “What are you saying? How can we let them win? They were part of that horrid auction yesterday."
“I know.” Sheng Fei replied. “I know they’re guilty and I know they deserve the worst punishment possible, but we need them alive. The Pei and Lu families are not on good terms with the Emperor. The more chaos they cause, the more distracted the Emperor will be, and the better we’ll be able to cover our tracks. The less focus we get from the Emperor, the better."
Hua Ren scoffed. He fixed his robes and stood up, putting some distance between them. “So you’re just trying to protect yourself." He said, shaking his bead in disbelief. "You’re just trying to make sure you don’t get caught. You’re not even thinking about how this will affect other people. If the Pei and Lu families stay out there, more people will suffer. They’ll continue to terrorize people. They’ll continue kidnapping and holding their disgusting auctions. They will-"
“I know!” Sheng Fei snapped, his voice rising with frustration. "I know what will happen if they remain free. I know that better than you. What I want you to understand is that whether or not they are taken down, the people of this kingdom witll continue to suffer. The terrorism, the kidnapping, all of it will continue. Not a single thing will change so long as the current Emperor sits on the throne. Removing the Pei and Lu families will change nothing. Other families still exist and I’m telling you, they will be overjoyed to get their grubby hands on the Pei and Lu businesses and if they don’t, the Emperor will do so. The person we need to eliminate is the Emperor. Once he’s gone, a better ruler will take his place. Only then will the Celestial Kingdom become a better place."
Hua Ren stayed silent, his brows tightly knotted as he pondered Sheng Fei’s words.
Sheng Fei met Hua Ren’s gaze and sighed, his expression softening. He moved to closer to Hua Ren and took Hua Ren’s hands in his own, squeezing them softly.
“Look,” he began, his voice quieter now, “we need the Emperor and the families to continue their feud. We need the Emperor distracted. For him to use this case to trap the Pei and Lu families, it means he considers them greater threats than we rebels. If we allow him to get rid of them, he’ll have time to focus on us and we won’t be able to make our moves. Despite our efforts over the years, there are still many villages and towns that desperately need saving. The others and I have only gotten this far by staying extremely hidden. We cannot continue if we’re exposed. So please, we need to make sure the families succeed.”
Hua Ren stared into Sheng Fei’s golden eyes, searching for any trace of deceit. Instead, he saw nothing but honesty and desperation. His shoulders sagged, and he sighed. “I understand what you’re saying and I’d really like to help but have you even thought about how the Pei and Lu families will move next? If you think about it, their only option right now is to closely follow the investigation and erase all evidence leading to them. But knowing Lu Wen, he wouldn’t stop there. He would use this opportunity to get rid of someone he considers a rival.”
Sheng Fei tilted his head, thinking. “A rival?”
Hua Ren nodded. "Among all the extremely affluent families in this kingdom, apart from mine, there’s only one I didn’t see present at the auction yesterday and that’s the Yuan family. The head of the family is my father’s best friend and the one Pei Lian and Lu Wen hate the most."
Sheng Fei’s eyes widened in realization. “Then the person they’ll most likely shift the blame to...is him.”
Hua Ren gave a solemn nod. “And I cannot let that happen.”
Sheng Fei fell silent for a moment, his golden eyes narrowing in thought as he pieced together the fragments of information. His hands slithered down Hua Ren’s arms, briefly rubbing his elbows then went to his waist, pulling him close until their bodies were slightly touching.
“How about this?” Sheng Fei began, before Hua Ren could say anything. “Instead of letting things unfold as they’ve planned, we turn it on their heads. We pin all the evidence on one of them—either Pei Lian or Lu Wen. That way, we incite bad blood between their families and, at the same time, deliver exactly what the Emperor wants. It also gives us a way to cover our tracks seamlessly. What do you think?”
Hua Ren’s eyes widened, disbelief flashing across his face as he stared at Sheng Fei. "Oh my God..." he whispered. The plan was brilliant. They could take down one family and the rebels would still be able to make their moves. He exhaled slowly, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Sheng Fei certainly had a crafty mind. He was suddenly thankful to be Sheng Fei’s mate if not, he would have been caught up in one of his devious plans.
"From that smile, I’m guessing you approve?" Sheng Fei asked, also smiling.
Hua Ren nodded slowly. "It’s risky...but it could work. If we move carefully, we can pull this off."
"Exactly." Sheng Fei answered. "All we need to do is point all the evidence towards one of them. So, who do we choose? Pei Lian or Lu Wen?"