Chapter 209 Past Transactions
Just as these people who were forcibly gathered together by Zhu Chengwu's supreme military intimidation began to think about whether Zhao Qingya's appearance would affect Cui Shuyun's status, and how much Zhu Chengwu was biased towards Zhao and Zhao Qingya who had just sent people to contact him, Zhu Chengwu and Zhao Qingya also officially started their conversation.

"I have temporarily isolated the surrounding space. People outside cannot hear our conversation. Cousin Qingya, you can tell me what's going on!"

Zhu Chengwu, who was blocking off the surrounding space, said this while looking at Zhao Qingya who was wearing a veil in front of him.

Zhu Chengwu had complicated feelings towards Zhao Qingya. After all, she was the woman who almost became his wife!
This has nothing to do with anything else, nor is it that Zhu Chengwu has any thoughts about Zhao Qingya, but it is human possessiveness and bad nature that are at work!
Or to be more precise, it is men’s possessiveness and bad nature that are at work!
Having no thoughts does not mean that there are no other emotions in your heart.

"Cousin Chengwu, there are some things I think you should know!"

Zhao Qingya looked at Zhu Chengwu in front of her, with emotions such as longing and regret flashing in her eyes. After hesitating for a few moments, she finally spoke.

Zhu Chengwu is still young, but she is old!

Not only old, but also...

"What's the matter? Just tell me!"

Zhu Chengwu signaled Zhao Qingya not to hesitate and get straight to the point.

"Cousin Chengwu, do you know why the Fu'an Marquisate was destroyed after you disappeared, but my Zhao family survived?"

Zhao Qingya looked at Zhu Chengwu and first asked this question.

This is also the question that has always puzzled Zhu Chengwu.

Logically speaking, since Zhu Chengwu's elder brother Zhu Chengzhi has taken action against the Fu'an Marquis' Mansion, it means that Zhu Chengzhi is not afraid of Zhu Chengwu's disappearance, is not afraid of offending Zhu Chengwu to death, and is not afraid of settling scores with Zhu Chengwu after he reappears.

Yes, due to their different positions and the struggle for the throne, Zhu Chengzhi and Zhu Chengwu had been fighting to the death for a long time. If that was the case, then what was there for Zhu Chengzhi to hesitate about?

If he lets go of the Marquis of Fu'an's Mansion, will Zhu Chengwu let him, Zhu Chengzhi, go once he reappears?
But since Zhu Chengzhi had already taken action against the Marquis of Fu'an's Mansion, he should not let go of Zhao, who had always stood on the same side as Zhu Chengwu and even directly confronted him in the court.

After all, in terms of the degree of offense and the size of the resentment in one's heart, the Zhao family is definitely above the Fu'an Marquis Mansion far away in Xuzhou City.

"Cousin Qingya, if you have anything to say, just tell me!"

There was a hint of displeasure in Zhu Chengwu's eyes as he looked at Zhao Qingya.

Zhu Chengwu hates the riddle teller, especially when the riddles told by the riddle teller are beyond Zhu Chengwu's ability to guess.

"Cousin Chengwu! Twenty-five years ago, after you disappeared, the Fu'an Marquis' Mansion was besieged. Grandpa and Senior Feng Qingyang tried their best to rescue it, but unfortunately there were too many masters. Even though Grandpa and Senior Feng Qingyang were masters, they couldn't save many people. In the end, Grandpa only saved your personal attendant Qiuyue and Cui Rongwei, a member of the Cui family!"

Zhao Qingya looked at Zhu Chengwu and began to tell the story from the very beginning.

"Are Qiuyue and Rongwei still alive?"

Such unexpected news is good news for Zhu Chengwu.

So even though Zhao Qingya's explanation was a little irrelevant, Zhu Chengwu did not urge her at all.

Perhaps this is because Zhao Qingya knew that what she said next would make Zhu Chengwu unhappy...

Zhao Qingya was using this information in advance to gain Zhu Chengwu's favor and to sell him good things, so as to avoid Zhu Chengwu getting furious after she finished telling the story!

Not bad!

Even if Zhao Qingya hasn't revealed what her ultimate purpose in seeking out Zhu Chengwu is?
But based on her attitude just now, and the fact that she first used the fact that Zhao Yuguang rescued Qiuyue and Cui Rongwei from the Marquis of Fu'an Mansion as a prelude, Zhu Chengwu had already guessed that the serious matter that Zhao Qingya was going to talk about next would not make Zhu Chengwu happy.

"Cousin Chengwu, Qiuyue and Cui Rongwei, two elders from the Fu'an Marquis' Mansion, are now at the Zhao's residence. Whenever you want to see them after you finish your business, you can come to the Zhao's at any time, or send a message to us, and we will bring them to you!"

Zhao Qingya looked at Zhu Chengwu and said sincerely.

But contrary to Zhao Qingya's expectations, Zhu Chengwu did not seem very excited after hearing the news that Qiuyue and Cui Rongwei were still alive. He just looked at her with an inexplicable look with a hint of smile.

Sensing that Zhu Chengwu seemed to have noticed something, Zhao Qingya's gaze towards Zhu Chengwu suddenly became a little evasive.

But after dodging, Zhao Qingya seemed to have thought of something and immediately regained the courage to look Zhu Chengwu in the face.

After her mood changed, when Zhao Qingya looked directly at Zhu Chengwu, not only did she no longer have the evasion and guilt she had just shown, but even the initial goodwill and worry were gone. Instead, she revealed obvious grief and unwillingness.

It was as if Zhu Chengwu had done something extremely wrong to her and caused her to suffer great injustice.

"Cousin, after you suddenly disappeared, Zhao looked for you for a long time, but never found you!

The former crown prince Zhu Chengzhi and Duke of Yan also took the opportunity to attack us!
Zhao went through a very difficult period!

We, the Zhao family, have resisted!
But twenty-five years ago, after three years of fighting with the previous king and the former crown prince, the influence and strength of the Zhao family had declined a lot.

Originally, Zhao felt that as long as he bought enough time for you, and persisted until you became a master and entered the capital, that would be enough!
It’s a pity that first the Shaolin Temple blocked the road, and then you suddenly disappeared!

All of Zhao's plans and calculations came to nothing!

Eventually, the Zhao family's strength was greatly weakened, and they fell into an absolute disadvantage under the attack of the former prince's faction!

In such a difficult situation, my grandfather and aunt resisted most fiercely. They once assassinated the former crown prince Zhu Chengzhi, wanting to take Zhu Chengzhi away and enthrone other descendants of the Zhu family as kings, so that the Zhao family could get an alternative breathing opportunity!

But in the end they failed. No one expected that the Queen Mother, Fang Huiju, who was also the Crown Princess at the time, suddenly displayed the strength of a Yang God level.

In addition, there was the soul-refining formation she had set up in the Prince's Mansion in advance.

Although grandpa and aunt tried their best, they could only severely injure the late crown prince Zhu Chengzhi and the current empress dowager Fang Huiju before the Duke of Qi, the Duke of Yan and other masters of the Zhu clan's main hall arrived to support them. In the end, they failed to send the late crown prince Zhu Chengzhi away as they wished!

However, at the last moment, when he realized that things were impossible to do, my grandfather paid the price with his own life and inflicted a lifelong injury on the late King Zhu Chengzhi!

That is to say, the former king Zhu Chengzhi possessed the most precious resources of the Ming Dynasty and could use all kinds of life-saving items to delay the situation. Otherwise...

This is also the reason why the former king Zhu Chengzhi died after only twenty years in power.

...

After my grandfather and aunt defied the world and forcefully attacked the Prince's Mansion, the late King Zhu Chengzhi originally wanted to exterminate the entire Zhao clan!
It was Empress Dowager Fang Huigui who stopped him!

Although I don’t know how Queen Mother Fang Huiju persuaded the late king, and how she persuaded my aunt?

But the final result was that my aunt and Queen Mother Fang Huigui reached a deal, and the late King Zhu Chengzhi no longer exterminated the entire Zhao family.

The content of the transaction included: the aunt issued an edict of self-criticism in the court, witnessed by all the ministers, and at the same time acknowledged the succession of the late king Zhu Chengzhi to the throne.

He convicted his uncle Zhao Jinbao of treason and transferred the command of the Tiger Teeth Guard and the Thousand Mile Leopard Cavalry, two absolutely elite forces established by the Zhao family, to the late king.

The aunt who was promoted to Empress Dowager imprisoned herself in Renshou Palace with her cousin Zhu Xiulan.

At the same time, I became the unofficial lover of the late king Zhu Chengzhi, and my cousin Zhu Xiulan changed her status, gave up her self-esteem as a princess, and became the concubine of the nephew of the queen mother Fang Huijue...

In this way, and after handing over all the power in his hands, the late king, under the persuasion of Queen Mother Fang Huigui, did not kill all the Zhao family members and preserved the Zhao family's inheritance.

However, after all the deals were done, my aunt apparently imprisoned herself in Renshou Palace, but in fact, she had already committed suicide in Renshou Palace because she was unwilling to be humiliated and unwilling to accept reality.

Of course, even after paying such a price, when Queen Mother Fang Huiju and her aunt reached a deal, there was an additional condition to preserve the Zhao family's inheritance!
That is, if one day my cousin, you reappear in the world and successfully ascend the throne of the Ming King, the Zhao family must step forward to save the Fang family!

Although Queen Mother Fang Huiju's conditions were extremely harsh and insulting, at the time, the Zhao family had no other way to preserve their inheritance!
Aunt and Zhao had no choice but to agree!
Cousin, your sudden disappearance has really caused great suffering to my aunt, cousin and Zhao!"

At the end of her speech, Zhao Qingya looked at Zhu Chengwu with an expression that became extremely sad, angry and dissatisfied.

Even though Zhao Qingya knew that Zhu Chengwu was now stronger than he was 25 years ago and was strong enough to decide her and the Zhao family's future fate, when she came to this point, Zhao Qingya couldn't help but feel sad and dissatisfied.

Even though he was already invincible, Zhu Chengwu, who heard the news for the first time, felt mixed emotions when he saw Zhao Qingya in front of him. Zhu Chengwu also seemed to understand and tolerate Zhao Qingya's current attitude.

Zhu Chengwu knew that his sudden disappearance would bring a huge blow to all the forces that relied on him and all the people who centered on him.

But Zhu Chengwu really didn't expect that the blow would be so huge and the consequences would be so serious.

In other words, Zhu Chengwu thought about it, but in the absence of the person involved directly stating it, Zhu Chengwu chose to pretend that he didn't know or didn't expect it.

Zhu Chengwu did not enter Xuzhou City, and Zhu Xiumin, the only person who had the position and courage to question Zhu Chengwu, did not have the opportunity to communicate with Zhu Chengwu in detail.

Now ask yourself, Zhu Chengwu was dissatisfied with Zhu Xiumin, in addition to the reasons he had expressed before, Zhu Chengwu might have known deep down in his heart that once he entered Xuzhou City and had too much contact with Zhu Xiumin, he could no longer pretend that he didn't know, didn't understand, and wasn't clear about how much the people and forces centered on him paid after his sudden disappearance, and how much they complained about Zhu Chengwu before they died!
With the avoidance thoughts deep in his heart, Zhu Chengwu found an excuse not to enter Xuzhou City, and left after confirming Zhu Xiumin's safety.

As for Cui Shuyun, she was always thinking about divorce and had always kept a certain distance from the Fu'an Marquis' Mansion. She was not familiar with Zhao, and Cui had long cut off ties with Cui Shuyun's family.

Her family, including herself, her father and her brother, were suddenly affected by Zhu Chengwu.

But for Cui Shuyun, she directed her hatred towards the actual executioner, and did not have much hatred towards Zhu Chengwu, the instigator.

It was precisely because he sensed Cui Shuyun's attitude that Zhu Chengwu agreed to Cui Shuyun at the gate of Xuzhou City, allowing Cui Shuyun to continue to be his wife and use his power to take action.

However, Zhao Qingya's appearance and questioning now made it impossible for Zhu Chengwu to escape from the hidden desire deep in his heart.

Not only is there nowhere to escape, but now Zhu Chengwu has to face another difficult hurdle: whether or not he, Zhu Chengwu, should follow the promises and conditions his mother Zhao Yushan agreed to.

"So, you are coming to me now to be the Queen Mother's lobbyist and to help the Fang family?"

Zhu Chengwu, who really didn't know how to respond, asked a question instead of an answer, asking Zhao Qingya's purpose of appearing here.

"Yes, cousin! The Queen Mother has sent someone to look for me. I have no other choice. I need to do what my aunt promised!"

Zhao Qingya looked at Zhu Chengwu without avoiding the question and answered.

Look determined!

"Cousin, you should know that my relationship with our mother is not close, and I am also cautious and wary of the Zhao family when cooperating with them!

Why do you think I would accept the conditions that my mother agreed to in order to protect the Zhao family?"

After taking a breath, Zhu Chengwu realized that it was useless to escape and finally chose to answer the question head-on.

Looking at Zhao Qingya, Zhu Chengwu said in a cold and ruthless tone.

"Yes, cousin! You have never been close to our Zhao family! Otherwise, you would not have preferred to marry... rather than...

And with your character, how could you tie your own hands and feet and abide by the conditions promised by your aunt?"

Zhu Chengwu's words made Zhao Qingya feel cold in her heart.

Although Zhu Chengwu's reply was already among the possibilities that Zhao Qingya had deduced before she came to look for Zhu Chengwu this time.

Even Zhao Qingya hoped deep down in her heart that Zhu Chengwu would make such a choice, not abide by the transaction promise made by her aunt Zhao Yushan out of helplessness, to avenge the Zhao family and her aunt, and to avenge her and her cousin Zhu Xiulan!
But now when Zhu Chengwu really said such cruel words, Zhao Qingya couldn't help but feel empty in her heart.

Especially when she thought about her own experience, her past dreams and Zhao's expectations of her, her thoughts became even more complicated.

Under the influence of this emotion, Zhao Qingya turned her head unconsciously and cast her gaze towards Cui Shuyun, who was dozens of steps away from here, and glanced at Cui Shuyun.

Although Zhao Qingya understood that she, who had been forced to be the lover of the late king Zhu Chengzhi for a period of time, was no longer worthy of the now invincible Zhu Chengwu.

But the emotions in our hearts are often not influenced or controlled by reason.

"Now that everything has been made clear! That's it! Cousin Qingya, you can go home now!"

Zhu Chengwu turned his head and ignored Zhao Qingya.

"By the way, cousin Qingya, mother, do you have any last words before you die?"

Zhu Chengwu turned his back to Zhao Qingya and asked casually before removing the force field that separated the space around him.

However, Zhu Chengwu's question did not receive an answer from Zhao Qingya for a long time.

Just when Zhu Chengwu couldn't help but want to use the ability of the Supreme Grand Master to further delve into Zhao Qingya's heart and find out Zhao Qingya's mood changes at the moment, so as to infer Zhao Yushan's last words, Zhao Qingya's loud laughter of "Hahaha..." suddenly came from behind Zhu Chengwu.

However, although it was laughter, with the help of the ability of the Supreme Grand Master, Zhu Chengwu could clearly sense the inexplicable emotions of anger, ridicule, and helplessness in Zhao Qingya's heart.

"Hahaha…

Cousin, I really thought you were so heartless and ungrateful that you didn't care at all!
But now it seems that you still care!

Do you want to know what your aunt's last words were?
Then let me tell you, after my aunt reached a deal with the Queen Mother Fang Huigui, she did return to the Zhao family before she committed suicide.

After explaining Zhao's strategy for dealing with the world after she left, my aunt did mention you, my cousin!

But what my aunt said was, if you were not dead, and we in the Zhao family saw you again, remember to tell you that my aunt would never forgive you, cousin!
I will never forgive you~~"

I don’t know if it’s because of the glance at Cui Shuyun, or because of the cruel words Zhu Chengwu just said, and now he turned around and left without hesitation, but Zhao Qingya’s mood suddenly fluctuated significantly, and her words revealed obvious anger, hatred, and sadness.

"Really? My abnormally rational mother, who always puts the Zhao family first, didn't she consider the fact that I was able to defeat the three great monks of Shaolin Temple 25 years ago, and once I appear again, I will be invincible in the world? Her last words will bring disaster to the Zhao family!"

Hearing Zhao Qingya's words, Zhu Chengwu, who had his back to Zhao Qingya, breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhu Chengwu then removed the force field that separated the space around him and strode back to his previous position.

At this time, Zhao Qingya was reminded by Zhu Chengwu's words and realized that her cousin Zhu Chengwu was also someone that the Zhao family could not afford to offend.

Even because their grandfather Zhao Yuguang and aunt Zhao Yushan have passed away, the closest connection between them and Zhu Chengwu is no longer there.

She shouldn't be affected by her emotions and throw a tantrum in front of Zhu Chengwu.

After not seeing each other for more than 30 years, Zhu Chengwu might not tolerate her temper now. What she said just now might really cause trouble for the Zhao family, which is now not as good as before.

"Cousin, I~~"

Zhao Qingya was about to make amends, but Zhu Chengwu, who had already sensed everything with the help of his supreme grandmaster ability, waved his hand without even turning his head, stopping Zhao Qingya from making amends.

“For the sake of my grandfather and my mother, Zhao will have a bright future!
Cousin, you have said what you should say and done what you should do.

Now, it's time for you to return to Zhao!

I will personally negotiate with Fang Huiju, the wife of the king!"

Zhu Chengwu walked to the place where he had just left, turned around, looked up at the familiar yet unfamiliar Ming Palace in front of him, with a complicated look in his eyes.

"Enter the palace!"

Zhu Chengwu gave an order.

"Yes, Lord Marquis!"

Behind him, there was a chorus of responses that shook the heavens and the earth.

(End of this chapter)