Chapter 400: Righteous Revenge
Translator: Pika
Zu An smiled and said, “What medicine? Shouldn’t you look for Divine Physician Ji if you need something like that? Even Ji Xiaoxi would be a better choice than me.”
Zheng Dan sighed. “Of course we sought out Divine Physician Ji, but there was nothing that Divine Physician Ji could do.
“You know that Sang Qian was seriously injured, and his life is hanging by a thread right now. Even Divine Physician Ji was only just able to keep him from death’s door. His health has only declined since then, and there has been nothing that Divine Physician Ji could do to stop this.
“Even though Sang Hong has two children, he only has one son. If Sang Qian dies, then he won’t have any heirs.”
Zu An snorted. “What’s so strange about bad people having bad things happen to them?”
Sang Hong’s scheming in the dark was the whole reason behind the mess that the Chu clan was currently in.
Zheng Dan bit her lip. “That may be true, but a father will surely be driven to further madness once his only son passes away. When that happens, he will show the Chu clan even less favor.”
“Are you threatening me?” Zu An was slightly unhappy. He subconsciously squeezed her hand more tightly.
“Ah!” Zheng Dan cried out in pain, but didn’t dare show it, out of fear that the other students would notice. “I’m not threatening you. I’m just helping you weigh the pros and cons! I’ve already given you everything—are you still going to question my sincerity?”
Zu An snorted. “But you’re speaking on my enemy’s behalf.”
“I’m only passing on his words!” Zheng Dan sighed. “Since we’re so close, I’ll speak plainly. You surely are well aware that the Chu clan’s recent troubles were provoked by him. Madam Chu suffered a mortal wound a few days ago, and even Ji Dengtu was powerless to save her. However, you used a bottle of medicine to save her life.
“Sang Hong was extremely shocked when he heard this, so he wishes to make an agreement with you. He will release Brightmoon Duke and stop any further plotting against the Chu clan. At the same time, the Sang clan will pledge their friendship to you. In return, he only requests for that bottle of medicine.”
Zu An couldn't keep his annoyance from his voice. “The Chu clan’s salt permits are already back in our hands. What right does he have to keep detaining Brightmoon Duke? Furthermore, his schemes against the Chu clan have already failed. What difference does it make whether he gives up now or not?”
Zheng Dan shook her head. “Things are not that simple. Let’s take Brightmoon Duke, for example. Qin Wanru already had the salt permits, so Brightmoon Duke should have already been released. However, Sang Hong still managed to make up all types of excuses to keep him detained. Following this line of reasoning, if he knows that his excuses won’t work any longer, and he is truly intent on dealing with the Chu clan, then killing Brightmoon Duke wouldn’t be too difficult for him.”
Zu An’s expression changed immediately. “Sang Hong dares to assassinate a duke?”
Zheng Dan explained, “He obviously wouldn’t dare to do such a thing to a normal duke. However, you already know that Sang Hong is merely carrying out the emperor’s will. The emperor was the one who wanted to get rid of Brightmoon Duke in the first place. If something happens to him, the emperor will only criticize him lightly, but he wouldn’t really punish Sang Hong.
“Sang Hong’s plans to take down the Chu clan have failed again and again, and he has already been pushed to his limit as well. There is no way he would let Brightmoon Duke return.
“However, if you can save his son’s life, then he will willingly abandon this mission, and gladly suffer the emperor’s criticism.”
Zu An’s expression flickered. He really didn’t want to save Sang Qian, but if Chu Zhongtian came to harm because of this, he would be letting down Chu Chuyan and Chu Huanzhao. He would never be able to forgive himself for that.
Moreover, knowing Sang Hong’s sinister nature, he would make sure to tell everyone about how he hadn’t saved Chu Zhongtian, despite being given the chance to. There was no way to stop such news from spreading at all.
“Does Sang Hong know about the two of us?” Zu An asked suddenly.
Zheng Dan’s face turned red. “Of course not. If he does, he would kill me on the spot. Why would he send me here to negotiate with you?”
Zu An wasn’t happy. “You haven’t even formally married his son yet. He doesn’t have the authority to do that.”
Zheng Dan rolled her eyes. She didn’t bother to reply.
Zu An was aware that the weddings of this world were different from those of his modern era. As such, he asked her further, “What are your thoughts on this matter?”
There was a slight hesitation, but Zheng Dan still said, “Since the two of us are already so close, I won’t hide anything from you. Regardless of whether Sang Qian and I get married, I still feel a sense of guilt for what has developed between us, and I want to make it up to him. At the same time, if this agreement goes ahead, the Zheng clan will benefit immeasurably as well. That is why I really hope that you can help me save him.”
After a pause, she smiled and said to him, “Of course, if you can make the Sang clan and the Zheng clan agree to me marrying you instead, then I wouldn’t have to feel so conflicted over Sang Qian.”
Zu An was speechless. “You know that that’s impossible. I have no problems with taking you in as my wife, but are you willing to elope with me?”
Zheng Dan sighed. “You know that I bear the hopes of my clan on my shoulders. How can I turn my back on them?”
Zu An gave this matter some thought, and finally said, “It’s not impossible to save him, but when I think about how he will marry you as soon as he recovers... Wouldn’t I be the one who gets cuckolded? No way!”
Zheng Dan’s face turned red. “You are clearly the one who made him a cuckold...”
Zu An sniffed dismissively. “Whatever. I won’t agree to this.”
Zheng Dan hesitated for a moment, then said quietly, “Actually, there might be a way out. He was injured so badly, after all. If something happens to him and he can’t... It would be completely normal...”
Zu An gasped. “You’re terribly ruthless!”
Zheng Dan’s eyes reddened. “I was thinking for your sake, all right? Why am I the ruthless one here? Do you think that I don’t want a normal husband? If there is no way for me to marry you...”
She began to sob towards the end. Zu An immediately helped her to wipe away her tears. “I misspoke. That really does solve my dilemma. I can’t be a prostitute and still demand a virgin spouse.”
Fortunately, the two of them were already close to the staff residences, so there weren’t any students around them. Otherwise, rumors would have already begun to spread like wildfire.
Zheng Dan giggled when she heard what he said. Her face reddened as she said, “Pah! If you’re a prostitute, then what am I?”
“You are my...” Zu An whispered a word in her ear.
Zheng Dan’s neck instantly flushed red, and her body went limp.
Zu An used this chance to pick her up and walk into his residence. They were soon wrapped around each other.
“So, do you agree?” Zheng Dan pressed against his chest and said while biting her lip.
Zu An’s expression grew gloomy. “Can we not talk about this now? You’re making me look like a villain! It’s almost as if you are consenting to what we’re doing only because you want to save your lover.”
Zheng Dan rolled her eyes. “Didn’t you love playing these types of games with me before?”
Zu An felt blood rush to his head. He immediately got into character. “Heh, heh, heh, whether or not I’ll agree to your demands will depend on your performance!”
Zheng Dan immediately put on a delicate and pitiful appearance. “Please! Please spare him! I’ll agree to anything you say!”
Zu An whistled in admiration. This woman was a born actress! How could he possibly hold himself back anymore? He immediately began to ‘tackle’ this question of whether he was going to save Sang Qian or not.
Either way, Sang Hong was blackmailing them with Chu Zhongtian’s life, so this was righteous revenge.