When Guo Wei spoke again, the mildness on his face was gone. His face was as cold as water, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes, like a dagger suddenly drawn from a scroll.
"Sun Miaoqing's outburst by the lake has enraged the Princess Royal. In this matter, neither the Guo family nor the Li family can escape responsibility."
"Don't bother saying that Sun Miaoqing has the Sun surname and is not part of your Li family. In the eyes of the Princess Royal, it makes no difference."
"Moreover, if she didn't have this connection with your Li family, I wouldn't have let her into our family in the first place."
"The Princess Royal must be aware of this."
After listening to him for so long, Li Wanming finally heard him getting to the point. She couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.
She put down the chestnut cake in her hand, clapped her hands, and said, "Lord Guo, just tell me what you want me to do."
Since the real intention had been revealed, there was no need to beat around the bush anymore.
Li Wanming stared calmly at Guo Wei.
She knew that all the long speeches and the wonderful performance just now were nothing but a mutual probing between them. Now, it was the moment for the real head - on confrontation and the decisive moves.
"It's very simple."
Guo Wei gave a faint smile and said, "I hope Lady Cheng can go and visit the Princess Royal."
...
What?
Visit... the Princess Royal?
Li Wanming had to admit that this conversation with Guo Wei was the most difficult one she had ever had in her life.
Every word, every question, and every performance of his was beyond her expectation.
First, he asked her to persuade Sun Miaoqing, and now he wanted her to visit the Princess Royal... These two requests were so absurd, but when they came out of Guo Wei's mouth, they seemed so natural.
"The key to this matter lies in the attitude of the Princess Royal. As long as she calms down, everything will be fine. So we must have someone to find out her attitude."
"Normally, I could go. But Ziyan has been staying in the Princess Mansion and hasn't returned home yet. I'm afraid that if I go rashly, I might anger the Princess Royal again."
"Moreover, I'm a deputy minister of the Ministry of Personnel and an important court official. Visiting the Princess Mansion would easily attract criticism and unnecessary suspicion and trouble."
Guo Wei looked directly into her eyes: "But Lady Cheng is different."
"You're an outsider, not involved in court affairs. At the same time, you have the support of the Princess Chengping and the General Yunhui behind you. The Princess Royal won't take her anger out on you. So after much thought, I still think it's the most appropriate for Lady Cheng to go and find out the situation."
It really made sense!
This speech was flawless. Li Wanming couldn't help but applaud Guo Wei in her heart.
Finding out the attitude and passing on information... This arrangement sounded very reasonable.
But Li Wanming knew that these were definitely not the real thoughts deep in the heart of this old fox.
Just like persuading Sun Miaoqing to come back, maintaining family harmony, and comforting the grandmother, they were all just pretexts put forward by Guo Wei.
He must still have some powerful tricks up his sleeve.
After this short period of confrontation, Li Wanming was gradually getting a bit of a grasp of Guo Wei's tactics.
This man was not only an old fox but also a smiling tiger.
Every word, every deed, and every move of his had a deep meaning. Even if he had ten parts of his thoughts, he would only show three.
However, Li Wanming's experience was still a bit lacking, and she still couldn't see through what he was up to this time.
But it didn't matter. She would respond to all changes with constancy.
No matter what Guo Wei said, her answer would always be a simple "no".
"No."
Li Wanming said firmly.
Guo Wei paused and said, "Is Lady Cheng worried about the danger? There's no need to be afraid. My son is still in the Princess Mansion at the moment. He will surely find a way to ensure Lady Cheng's safety..."
"Oh? Does Young Master Guo have so much influence?"
Li Wanming looked up at Guo Wei obliquely, a slight sneer on her lips: "If Young Master Guo's words carry so much weight, then why doesn't he persuade the Princess Royal not to be angry and let us off? How about that?"
"Ah!" As if suddenly remembering something, she said in surprise: "I forgot that Young Master Guo and the Princess Royal are a pair of star - crossed lovers! Since they're truly in love, the Princess Royal must be willing to listen to Young Master Guo. Well, well, we're safe now!"
Guo Wei's face turned a bit ugly.
He looked at Li Wanming, and a hint of viciousness flashed in his eyes.
After a long time, Guo Wei said unnaturally, "Lady Cheng is really joking."
"Even though the Princess Royal has feelings for Ziyan, she is a noble princess. Being humiliated in public like that, how could she easily let it go?"
"Oh, I see! It was you who didn't allow them to be together back then, which angered the Princess Royal. So the Princess Royal is using this incident as an excuse to take revenge!"
Li Wanming clapped her hands and said, "Lord Guo, your family is finished! The Princess Royal will surely settle all the old and new scores this time and will wipe out your entire family!"
What??!
Guo Wei was completely stunned.
He really didn't expect that Li Wanming's train of thought would suddenly take such a turn.
His Guo family... How could they be wiped out?
Guo Wei stared at Li Wanming, his face darkening, and his breathing becoming a bit rapid.
He suddenly felt that the problem might be more difficult than he had imagined.
Actually, the reason why he asked Li Wanming to visit Danyang was not to let her find out Danyang's attitude. Instead, he wanted to use her to divert Danyang's anger to the Princess Chengping.
It didn't matter what Li Wanming said or did after she went. The important thing was that in Danyang's eyes, she was someone from the Princess Chengping's camp.
That was enough.
The best way to stop a fierce beast from hurting people was to feed it.
And the Princess Chengping was the perfect bait.
The Princess Chengping and the Princess Royal Danyang had always been at odds and had been fighting for many years.
As long as she - or someone belonging to her - showed up, Danyang's full - blown anger would undoubtedly be vented in this direction, and she would no longer care about others.
By then, the Guo family would be safe.
Guo Wei was certain that Li Wanming must not know about the feud between the Princess Royal Danyang and the Princess Chengping - how could a merchant's wife know about the secrets among these noble lords and ladies?
So, after his previous performance didn't work, he果断ly changed his strategy.
Divert the disaster eastward and sacrifice another to save oneself.
So, as long as Li Wanming was willing to go to the Princess Mansion, this plan would be a great success.
...
The problem was, she refused.
Not only did she refuse, but she also shifted all the blame to the Guo family and cursed their entire family to be wiped out...
This woman was really可恶!
...
Li Wanming caught a glimpse of Guo Wei's expression and was overjoyed in her heart.
Actually, the reason why she didn't want to go to the Princess Mansion was not only because she didn't want to follow Guo Wei's plan but also mainly because - she was scared!
Just thinking about that charming but cold face, Li Wanming felt a chill running up her spine, and her whole body couldn't help shivering.
Go to the Princess Mansion?
Was she addicted to seeking death!