Guo Wei pondered for a moment and then said, "Even though Miao Qing may have a thousand faults, she's still your cousin. And just now, Lady Cheng said that Miao Qing is very much favored by your grandmother. For the sake of your grandmother, Lady Cheng should hope for Miao Qing's family peace."
Li Wanming frowned slightly, sensing something amiss.
Why did he keep insisting that she persuade Sun Miaoqing?
Even after all these words, he was still so insistent...
Well, perhaps the point wasn't whether Sun Miaoqing would come back, but that she must make an effort to persuade her.
Why?
Wasn't the most important thing now to find a way to calm the princess's anger?
Why was he fixated on Sun Miaoqing?
And, he must have her do the persuasion.
What was so special about her?
The background of the Princess of Chengping?
But this background was just a roundabout connection and not as useful as expected. Li's mother and Mrs. He might not know this, but Guo Wei, who had been in the officialdom for many years, couldn't be unaware.
If we were really talking about background, the Guo family, with a third - rank official, might even be more powerful than her tenuous connection.
So, what would happen if she went back to persuade Sun Miaoqing?
The result would be that Sun Miaoqing would calm down and happily return.
The Sun family wouldn't be affected. Maybe Sun's father didn't even know about this yet.
As for the Guo family... judging from Guo Wei's current attitude, it should suffer no losses.
And the princess...
The princess might very likely fly into a rage because she had persuaded Sun Miaoqing to reconcile with Guo Ziyan!
Li Wanming broke out in a cold sweat instantly.
That's right.
The princess had known that Guo Ziyan was married for a long time but hadn't lashed out, which meant she didn't care that much about Sun Miaoqing.
However, she must hate others interfering in her affairs!
If she rashly intervened, the princess would shift all her anger onto her.
At that time, the Guo family could quietly hide behind the scenes and watch her bear the princess's fury.
The princess had just lost face and wanted to take a few lives to vent her anger. Once she calmed down, everything would be fine. Naturally, the Guo family would be safe.
Li Wanming finally saw through Guo Wei's plan.
He wanted to get through this unscathed!
It was clearly a great disaster for both the Guo and Li families, but with his maneuvering, it became the Li family charging into battle while the Guo family protected themselves.
Li Wanming was sure that as soon as she went to persuade Sun Miaoqing, the Guo family would immediately report her whereabouts to the princess and shift the blame onto the Li family.
Brilliant...
This move of diverting the trouble to others was really a masterpiece.
His words seemed innocent on the surface, but there was a deadly scheme hidden behind them.
Li Wanming felt a chill run down her spine.
If she had foolishly agreed just now, she really wouldn't have known how she died.
Oh, as expected, the more handsome a man is, the better he is at deceiving.
The old ones are no exception!
After figuring this out, Li Wanming no longer saw Guo Wei as a charming and elegant gentleman. Instead, he looked repulsive and annoying to her.
After all, no matter how dignified and elegant a person looked, they would become disgusting under the influence of false feelings.
She slightly raised her eyelids and said indifferently, "Lord Guo is really being modest today."
"You're a Jinshi of both lists, personally selected by the late emperor to enter the Hanlin Academy. You were a brilliant and renowned talent back then. Why do you make it sound so pitiful?"
"Even if we don't talk about the past, just look at the present. You're a third - rank assistant minister with great power. My father is just a fourth - rank military officer. He can't compare with you at all."
"So, the flattering words Lord Guo said to me today are too much for me to bear. I'd better return them to you."
Li Wanming despised him in her heart, so her words became blunt.
Come on!
He was a third - rank official, a third - rank official!
No matter how hard the Guo family had it in the past, could it be harder than what Li Rusong and Yuan Jinqiu endured while suppressing bandits in the mountains?
A higher - ranking official always has the upper hand. He was a powerful assistant minister. Did he need her pity?
How could his hardships compare to those of Li Rusong and Yuan Jinqiu in the mountains?
If she didn't care about her parents who were on the verge of a great disaster but instead came here to pity him, her head would really be rusted!
"Also, I've made it very clear about Sun Miaoqing. I hate this person. I don't wish her well. The more unlucky she is, the happier I am. So, I won't go back to persuade her."
"Moreover, you'd better save those words about her being virtuous and proper. If Sun Miaoqing is virtuous, then every fool in the Great Sheng Empire could become the top scorer in the imperial examination."
"As for my grandmother... Lord Guo doesn't need to worry about her. Anyway, she's always unhappy. Whether I do something or not, she's never satisfied. So, just leave her alone. There's no need for Lord Guo to bother."
Li Wanming's words were extremely harsh, as if she had engraved the word "unfilial" on her forehead.
After she finished speaking, she raised her head, looked directly into Guo Wei's eyes, and there was a faint hint of provocation on her lips.
It was as if she was saying, Right! I'm this kind of unfilial and cold - hearted scoundrel. What can you do about it?
Guo Wei looked at her, his lips trembling, and his face was extremely ugly.
He didn't expect Li Wanming to speak so rudely and not care about her reputation at all.
Guo Wei had been in the officialdom for many years and was used to speaking vaguely and engaging in intrigue.
There was an unspoken rule in the officialdom that no matter how much people fought, they wouldn't break the surface of amicability until it was a life - or - death situation.
Leave some leeway for future encounters.
Even if they secretly wished for each other's downfall, they would still greet each other with smiles in the court.
This was called being proper.
So, the officialdom was full of sly old foxes and smiling tigers with honey on their lips and a sword in their hearts.
But Li Wanming didn't follow this rule at all!
Her words were straightforward and unpleasant. She laid all her cards on the table from the start and left no room for others.
Proper?
What was proper?
Could it be eaten? Was it delicious?
She attacked like a wild fighter, showing a tendency to defeat the old fox with her chaotic punches.
It left a scheming person like Guo Wei at a loss for a moment.
Seeing his troubled expression as if he was deep in thought, Li Wanming sneered inwardly. She wasn't in a hurry and picked up the snacks on the table to eat.
Noon had long passed, and she was really a bit hungry.
She ate happily, while Guo Wei's eyes were fixed on her, lost in thought.
He realized that he had underestimated this girl.
It wasn't that Guo Xinyue was innocent. It was this Li Wanming... she simply didn't play by the rules!
Guo Wei pondered for a long time and finally said, "Since Lady Cheng is so straightforward, I won't beat around the bush either."