When Lu Yan just stood there calmly, he seemed to get more agitated.
Advancing on her, he asked, "What? You have nothing to say?"
He was standing so close that she had to crane her neck to look up at him.
Still, she remained silent, looking up at him with imperturbable dark eyes that seemed to mock him.
He was so enraged that he reached behind her and swept a violent hand across her vanity.
Little porcelain jars filled with perfumes, powders, creams-
Wooden boxes holding gold, silver, jade ornaments-
Everything smashed into the floor with a loud crash.
Broken porcelain, spilled powders, and chipped jewelry scattered everywhere.
Lu Yan couldn't help being startled.
She took a few steps away towards the side. At this moment, she didn't want to be within arm's reach of this man.
He followed her. His voice seemed normal, but his eyes were blazing, when he asked, "Are you going to talk or not?"
"What do you want me to say?"
"I want to know why you set me up."
"What? You want to blame me for this?"
He cocked his head, "If not you, then who? You're Ji Jing's disciple."
At the mention of Ji Jing, Lu Yan suddenly realized she could use Chen Yuan. Thinking it over quickly, she decided to make a move.
First step, hit a weakness.
Lu Yan curled her lip, "Don't make me laugh. Aren't you supposed to be a great scholar? What did you think would happen if you tried to assassinate the regent and failed?"
He grabbed her arm tightly, "The only reason I failed was because you discovered the assassins!"
"What?" Lu Yan asked, "Did you want me to lie down and die when that man pointed an arrow at me?"
He shook her arm forcefully, "Don't lie to me! You knew! Before!"
Step two, hit another weakness.
With a great tug, she snatched her arm out of his grip, "You are delusional! Am I to blame for you ambition and greed? Your desire for quick power? Am I to blame your uncle for not caring about you?!"
Her healing wound was pulled yet again, and there was a stabbing pain in her core. She was so focused on this confrontation that she immediately pushed the discomfort out of her mind.
His face twisted.
When she retreated further, he followed her.
He remained silent though.
Lu Yan took a deep breath, and tried to speak calmly, "You might as blame yourself for being a Chen family son."
After a pause, she added, "Also, which other son of the Chen family have you seen trying to stand out like you at this time when the struggle for the throne is at its peak?"
Suddenly, he smiled, and it was an ugly expression.
Mocking, he asked, "Go on, tell me. What else?"
Before his eyes, she had suddenly transformed. And the transformation was startling.
Usually she was so placid that she could be overlooked, just like a tree or a chair in the background. Objectively, she was beautiful. But she seemed dead, making people feel subconsciously repelled by her presence.
Now though, her eyes were like burning fire, all chaos and rage. Her words were blades, meant to stab into places where he was the weakest.
This sharpness was what she hid underneath her mask. No wonder he'd always felt she was suspicious.
"In fact, I have a right to blame you." Lu Yan continued, feeling her anger reach its peak. "How dare you be so treacherous that you messed with my contraceptive soup? You knew my health has been poor since I was a child. Everyone agreed that it would be best to wait for a few more years before Chen Hai and I had children. And you even dare to use my child to control the regent?"
"Is that why you set me up?" he asked.
Step three, hit a weakness again.
"Should I let you just plant a child in my belly as you please, and then have the child under constant threat all their life?"
Scornfully, she added, "If you're so righteous, how come you did the same thing that your uncle did you today? You're even more despicable. You conspired to harm your nephew or niece without anyone else threatening you."
He seemed stunned at this parallel, "I didn't mean for you to get hurt. You should know I would never truly hurt you."
"Is that so?" Lu Yan laughed, disbelieving. "Chen Yuan. It doesn't even matter if I asked for help. Would you have gotten away with it? Would the regent forget you once held a knife to his throat?"
For a moment, silence settled over the room.
His voice was thoughtful when he spoke, "I see now. You would have done the same even if I had never hurt you." Looking her over, he said, "You're full of lies and manipulation. You see, someone has been tailing me and searching the archives for a long time. I didn't know who it was. I never suspected someone from my own family."
Step four, bludgeon the weakness yet again.
"Chen Yuan. You want to blame everyone in the whole world, but I don't see you blaming yourself at all."
Lu Yan raised her chin at him. "Are you really as competent as you think you are? Did you think of your brother or your mother when you planned the assassination?"
Her voice took on a thoughtful mocking tone, "What were you expecting? Why are you so surprised?"
He looked at her, and there was hatred in his eyes. "There's no way I would have failed if it hadn't been for you."
"Chen Yuan, do you think I am a pawn you can use as you please?" Lu Yan smiled, an ill-natured twist of her lips, and rising on her tiptoes so she could look him in the eye, she said softly, "Be careful not to choke on my bones."
Looking at her predatory eyes, Chen Yuan suddenly realized something.
And just like that, every errant piece that had been bothering him fell into place. This was the key information that made all of Lu Yan's contradictory behavior sensible.
He asked, "You entered this family on Ji Jing's behest, right?"
The expression on her face rapidly changed from mockery to surprise.
He continued thoughtfully, "No wonder I've been finding it strange. The people around you are weird. You are too clever by half. Who else could track my movements so cleanly? Now I get it."
Looking into her eyes was confirmation enough.
With absolute certainty, he continued, "You're one of Ji Jing's dog. Just like that butcher Han and the Sparrow."
The triumph Lu Yan had been feeling faded into wariness.
Chen Yuan continued, "If Ji Jing cared about you the slightest bit, do you think he would have let you marry someone for this base purpose? If your marriage is a transaction, what's the difference between you and the whores filling the brothels of the capital."
A shock of rage overcame Lu Yan at these words. By the time she realized what she was doing, she had already slapped him with all her strength.
Chen Yuan's head was wrenched to a side.
There was a pin drop silence in the room for a moment.
He touched his stinging cheek, still somewhat stunned, and turned back to look at her with incredulous eyes.
Lu Yan was breathing hard, already regretting her lapse in control.
Chen Yuan's surprise turned into fury.
Lu Yan took one look at him and stepped out of reach again.
Quick as he snake, he struck out, and grabbed her arm again.
This time, no matter how she struggled, he wouldn't let go.
His voice was soft, but venomous, "My brother is a fool. He actually thinks you care about him. I warned him so many times that you're a snake. But he wouldn't listen. Your honey words, and soft persuasions have captured him so effectively."
As she retreated, he followed.
She was backed into a wall, and he was so close that she had to raise her face to look up at him.
She used her free arm to push him away.
He stumbled back a step, but the next moment, his forearm was at her throat, choking her.
"Get away," she said through gritted teeth.
Her wound hurt again, and this time she noticed it.
He watched her watering eyes, and continued without pity, "Tell me, why shouldn't I work against you? Why shouldn't I make the highest possible use of you? Dirty little pawn as you are. If not use you, what else should I do with you? If it takes a child in your belly to trap you, why shouldn't I do it?"
Dropping his voice, he asked, almost frankly, "Do you deserve my sincerity?"
Lu Yan couldn't breathe. And her middle hurt too much. She signed with her free hand.
With the command finally given, the hidden guard in the room jumped into action.
The next second Chen Yuan went flying into the opposite wall.