Because Jiang Shuang felt unwell soon after arriving and lay down in a guest room, Yao Hua had left most of the guards there to watch over her and went to the Peach Blossom Forest.

It stood to reason that Prime Minister Jiang shouldn’t have been able to get in, but someone secretly led him inside. Liu Qiao wanted to continue following him, but when he was about to sneak in, he noticed the other man suddenly look around as if sensing something unusual. 

Liu Qiao realized that the other party was a martial arts master, so he could only hide and observe from the shadows.

Then Huo Fenglie came over with Liu Zhenqing.

Liu Qiao and Huo Fenglie had privately agreed that one of them must remain by Liu Zhenqing’s side to guard him, especially when outside. Huo Fenglie had official duties today and had delayed here too long, so when he was unable to find Liu Qiao, he had to go and seek him out.

Liu Zhenqing was helpless about their need to hand him over, but also went along with it.

Upon locating Liu Qiao, Huo Fenglie noticed that something was unusual and made a sound to draw his attention.

Liu Qiao immediately descended from the treetops.

“What are you doing?” Liu Zhenqing asked curiously.

Liu Qiao quickly told them what he had discovered.

The expressions of the two instantly changed. Liu Zhenqing glanced toward Huo Fenglie.

Huo Fenglie said: “Jiang Wang must have noticed the signs. He reported that he was ill and remained at the Prime Minister’s Manor today. For him to appear here…..”

Liu Zhenqing’s eyes shifted slightly.

Liu Qiao abruptly gave him a warning, and Huo Fenglie grabbed Liu Zhenqing, flying up into the trees together as Yao Hua’s procession passed below.

At this time, Yao Hua was being supported by a maid and appeared to be quite drunk.

Inside the small courtyard were Yao Hua, Jian Shuang, and Jiang Wang.

Liu Zhenqing’s expression changed several times as he gazed at the courtyard.

“Qing-ge?” Huo Fenglie was a little worried upon seeing his face.

Liu Zhenqing shook his head: “It shouldn’t be them. I can’t think of a motive.”

“I just thought it was odd, so I followed,” Liu Qiao said, also confused. “Why has he come to see the Empress Dowager and the Taifei?”

Huo Fenglie naturally understood their meaning.

Jiang Wang was a powerful force in the capital. This was something Liu Qiao had already confirmed. Coming here at this juncture, his purpose was likely to seek help from the schemers in the capital.

But since it was only the Empress Dowager and the Taifei here, it could be inferred that the person from the capital was either one of them, or they were not involved at all.

Liu Zhenqing frowned in thought. He couldn’t figure it out. Because back then, the three of them in the capital and the Huo brothers outside had been working their utmost for Yuan Jue’s country, and it wasn’t easy to get to this point. The two women had also gained status that was unsurpassed, as well as the respect and gratitude of the emperor. To get involved in something like rebellion, had they lost their minds? Did they think their lives were too comfortable? 

Although Yao Hua’s marriage to the crown prince was brief, she had a harmonious relationship with Prince Jingyang, and they treated one another with respect. She also got along with Yuan Jue, who never refused to see his stepmother. It could be said that there was no conflict at all. Later on, her good sister from the Imperial Academy also married the crown prince and became his foremost concubine. The sickly beauty with both talent and looks naturally won the pity of everyone in the East Palace. Although she had just begun her new life when misfortune befell the crown prince, the two sisters worked together to protect the prince’s orphans, such as Yuan Jue and Princess Jing.

In Liu Zhenqing’s eyes, they had sacrificed their entire youth and never relented or turned traitor under the persecution of the Three Kings. They were admirable heroes who protected the country.

To say that they were the force working in the capital, no matter how wise and far-sighted Liu Zhenqing was, he couldn’t find any convincing motive.

Liu Zhenqing muttered to himself: “Is it because of King Jing? Yuan Jue and King Jing aren’t related by blood to them, and it’s unreasonable that they would do this just for the slight friendship they had growing up, ah. Jiang Wang got involved in the rebellion because the mistakes he’s made won’t allow him to keep his life. He knew that Yuan Jue would certainly kill him once he investigated, so in order to preserve his life, it’s possible that he chose to cooperate with the rebels. But what wrongs could the women in the harem have perpetrated? According to their status as elders, even if they made mistakes, Yuan Jue would treat them with tolerance…..”

Liu Zhenqing analyzed the situation to himself for a long while, but still couldn’t make sense of it. He then said to Liu Qiao with a furrowed brow: “Try and see if you can eavesdrop. Listen if you can, and escape if you’re discovered. Just don’t let anyone recognize you, and try not to get in a fight.” He was truly baffled, and wanted to quickly make sure they had nothing to do with this matter. At this point, it didn’t matter whether or not they alerted the enemy.

Liu Qiao nodded in agreement.

Huo Fenglie wouldn’t leave for the time being. In order to avoid the two of them being discovered, he took Liu Zhenqing a little farther away to wait for Liu Qiao to act.

Liu Qiao flew cautiously into the courtyard and landed silently on the roof, exploring around. He seemed to find something, so he lay down in a certain place and waited quietly.

“How has their relationship been over the years?” Liu Zhenqing asked Huo Fenglie in a low voice.

Huo Fenglie knew who Liu Zhenqing was asking about, and unconsciously touched the ring on his finger. He understood that what Qing-ge didn’t want most was for the Empress Dowager to be involved with the rebels.

“Even though I’m not often in the capital, I heard that the relationship between the Empress Dowager and Yuan Jue is extremely harmonious. In recent years, affairs of the harem have been mostly left for the Empress Dowager to manage. Even if Yuan Jue is willing to give them power, they aren’t willing to get involved, which relieves Yuan Jue very much.”

Liu Zhenqing said: “The Empress is Jiang Wang’s eldest daughter, and was chosen by me and the Empress Dowager. Because Jiang Wang is a talent, he keeps balance between the new and old ministers, resourceful and full of stratagems, and is extremely capable. There are many officials in the Jiang family, but they’re complete wallflowers. In order to gain the support of the new officials headed by Jiang Wang, it was a necessity that he be given the position of father-in-law of the emperor. Yuan Jue was still young at the time, and was very resistant to being coerced into taking an empress in this way. He also hated giving power to a minister like Jiang Wang whose loyalty wasn’t completely secured. But for the sake of the stability of the throne and the peace of the Great Zhou Dynasty, there was no other way.”

This meant that sooner or later, Yuan Jue would deal with Jiang Wang.

Just as he was thinking, Huo Fenglie suddenly alerted him. Liu Zhenqing looked over and caught sight of Liu Qiao quickly departing. Right after, a man jumped onto the roof, seemingly suspicious of something. But he was uncertain, and didn’t glimpse Liu Qiao’s figure. After all, Liu Qiao had reached the pinnacle of qinggong.

Likely because he was uneasy, the man simply sat on the roof and didn’t leave.

“Zheng Wei?” Huo Fenglie frowned.

Liu Zhenqing wasn’t familiar with Zheng Wei, nor had he met him, but he had heard of him. “The director of the Dongchang, Qin Yu’s adoptive father?”

Huo Fenglie nodded.

Liu Zhenqing frowned slightly. All of the information they knew had become more complicated once they returned to the capital.

As far as Zheng Wei was concerned, it was reasonable for him to be here. After all, he was traveling with the Empress Dowager and the Taifei. He was responsible for escorting them, but if Jiang Wang had gone in, he must know something. 

So, was it Zheng Wei who wanted to meet with Jiang Wang, or was Zheng Wei helping Jiang Wang meet with someone else? 

According to Qin Yu, Zheng Wei would never betray Great Zhou. If this statement was to be believed, what role did Zheng Wei play in this? Since he wouldn’t betray Great Zhou, why not cooperate with Huo Fenglie and exchange information? 

“Get me a copy of Zheng Wei’s detailed profile later,” Liu Zhenqing said.

Even to reach the level of head of the eunuchs, everything he did would be based on power and desire. Studying his identity profile was no longer of much use, but Liu Zhenqing still wanted to see what was going on with this Zheng Wei.

Huo Fenglie naturally acquiesced. Very soon, Liu Qiao returned after circling around.

Liu Zhenqing immediately asked him what had happened.

Liu Qiao blamed himself. He hadn’t seen who Jiang Wang was talking to, and only heard his furious voice.

“We agreed to cooperate, but you don’t care whether I live or die? Just treat this as me begging you. Think about it again, now that things have come to this, why not give it a try? Are you afraid that Huo Fenglie will come back soon?”

The other party’s lack of response must have given Jiang Wang his answer.

“Hahaha, I understand. You’re trying to abandon me and preserve yourselves because the emperor has become suspicious. If I’m caught, aren’t you afraid that I’ll give you up and we’ll all die together?”

“Yes, I indeed won’t. I still want you to continue to be a thorn in the emperor’s side, so the entire troop can’t be wiped out! Hahaha! Therefore, I’ll still do what I’m going to do tonight. If I fail, you must protect my daughter…..if you protect my daughter, I will fulfill your wishes.”

Having heard this much, after Liu Qiao finished his retelling, Liu Zhenqing and Huo Fenglie simultaneously grasped the key point. Nothing else mattered except for “what he was going to do tonight.”

The two of them exchanged glances.

“Since the Empress Dowager knows you’ve come, you should pay respects before leaving,” Liu Zhenqing said.

Huo Fenglie nodded. “So it should be.”

The two quickly approached the courtyard entrance and told the palace attendants to spread the message. Some time later, they were called in.

But Yao Hua was nowhere to be seen, only the sickly-looking Jian Shuang lying on her side in bed.

The room Liu Qiao had seen before was right next to this one. Liu Zhenqing glanced at Huo Fenglie, who shook his head slightly to indicate that there was no one in the other room. They had just been outside, and Jiang Wang vanishing into thin air proved that there was a secret passage here.

They had missed their opportunity to follow him.

“General Huo, Young Master Liu. My sister is drunk and cannot receive you, so I am here in her stead.” Jian Shuang spoke softly, as if short of breath. With such a physique, Liu Zhenqing had always thought she wouldn’t be able to live for many years, and hadn’t expected that she would survive up to this point.

Huo Fenglie said directly: “I saw Director Zheng on the roof when I arrived just now. Has something happened?”

Jian Shuang was taken aback. There was nothing abnormal in her expression. “This one just woke up and doesn’t know much. If General Huo has any questions, he can ask him.”

“I’ve troubled the Taifei. I only came to offer my greetings and take my leave, as I have official duties to attend to.”

Since Jiang Wang couldn’t be found, Huo Fenglie was unwilling to waste any time here.

Jian Shuang smiled and nodded, letting the two take their leave.

Everything seemed extremely normal.

When they emerged outside, Huo Fenglie looked up. Zheng Wei regarded them with a smile and cupped his hands in greeting: “Greeting General Huo and Young Master Liu. This servant is standing guard, so it is inconvenient to come down.”

“Is there some kind of danger?”

“Not as such. But there are many people around today, so there must be many swordsmen going back and forth, which worries this servant somewhat,” Zheng Wei replied with humble politeness.

Huo Fenglie said no more, and left with Liu Zhenqing.

But both of them could feel Zheng Wei staring intently at them from behind.

After leaving the courtyard, Huo Fenglie immediately took off. Regarding the so-called “tonight,” Huo Fenglie had to be on guard. It was difficult to warn Yuan Jue directly, but as long as Huo Fenglie was by his side, safety wouldn’t be a problem.

If Jiang Wang was about to take action, it looked like he wouldn’t survive the night.

Liu Zhenqing’s expression gradually changed as he watched Huo Fenglie depart. Liu Qiao jumped down and said: “Master.”

“I didn’t expect it to happen so soon. I’ll trouble you, Liu Qiao. It’ll probably be tonight, but…..safety must be the top priority. I don’t want to lose another companion,” Liu Zhenqing said slowly.

Liu Qiao said firmly: “I know, Master. But…..don’t you need to tell General Huo?”

Liu Zhenqing’s lips rose in a smile: “His acting is terrible, and he’s surrounded by people. At this point, a little carelessness is unacceptable. But when the time comes, he’ll know what to do.”

Liu Zhenqing didn’t remain at the Imperial Academy. After returning, he went directly to the General’s Manor, since Liu Qiao wouldn’t feel at ease if he was anywhere else.

Li Xingruo was a little surprised when she saw him coming, and said: “Have you come to see me?”

“I need some medicine,” Liu Zhenqing said directly.

“Is the dowry you dug out of Master not enough?” she wondered.

“Only you can prepare this strange medicine.”

“What is it?”

“A truth serum.”

Li Xingruo raised an eyebrow, saying: “You should know that there is no such thing as an actual truth serum, only ones that put a person in a daze so that they’re unconsciously honest. If the secret is important to a person and they truly don’t want to reveal it, they won’t speak.”

“It doesn’t matter, I’ll just give it a try,” Liu Zhenqing said with a casual smile.

“What is it for? Will you use it on Fenglie?” Li Xingruo joked. “The boy is hard-spoken and can’t say anything sweet. Do you want to play with him?”

Liu Zhenqing thought of how Er-gou was today, and his lips slowly rose: “What a good idea.”

Li Xingruo gave him a look of disgust: “It harms the body. Don’t make him use it indiscriminately.”

Liu Zhenqing could only say: “Alright. Anway, just get some ready for me. I want it tonight.”

Liu Zhenqing spoke firmly, in complete contrast to his usual tone. At times like this in the past, even though Li Xingruo was tough as nails, she would choose to listen to her senior brother when he was in such a state.

But Li Xingruo still felt that today’s Liu Zhenqing was a bit strange. When Liu Zhenqing ate dinner and then went to the small Buddhist chamber, Li Xingruo watched his back and dazedly felt as if she was seeing the Liu Zhenqing from ten years ago. When he encountered something unhappy back then, he wouldn’t say a word, and would only hide in the small Buddhist chamber.

At that time, Liu Zhenqing concealed his true feelings. He was cold and gloomy, increasingly moody, and his emotions were unpredictable. Seeing this, Li Xingruo could only feel anxious and helpless.

The present Liu Zhenqing was casual and cheerful. Even though he had once wanted to stay away from all of this, he still returned to the capital to be with Huo Fenglie. He wouldn’t talk about his past, and never spoke of his grievances to Huo Fenglie or others, nor about clearing his name. It was as if he had truly been reborn, and all he needed was to happily fall in love with Huo Fenglie.

Li Xingruo was naturally glad to see Liu Zhenqing this way. She hoped that he could always be like this, as carefree and boisterous as he was in his youth.

But today, she glimpsed the mood of Prime Minister Liu, which was like a thick layer of smog covering his body.

This made her a little uneasy.

As night fell, the capital grew quiet by increments. There was a commotion in the capital for a while, but it was quickly suppressed. Even the continuous cries of slaughter didn’t spread very far. Dozens of corpses were carried out continuously, and the blood flowing down the steps was cleaned up by palace attendants.

Among them were guards, maids, and eunuchs.

At this time, three people stood in the main hall – Zheng Wei, He Cong, and Huo Fenglie.

Among them, Huo Fenglie and He Cong were splattered in blood. He Cong slowly wiped it away with a handkerchief. Looking at Huo Fenglie with a smile, he said: “Thanks to the general for happening to come over tonight. Otherwise, we would be guilty of the unforgivable crime of disturbing His Majesty.”

Huo Fenglie gave a brief nod: “It was a coincidence.”

He Cong turned to Zheng Wei and said: “Director Zheng, it was so lively tonight. Why didn’t I see you?”

Zheng Wei raised his eyebrows: “Commander He, can something like this be considered lively? Moreover, I was responsible for guarding the Empress Dowager and the Taifei today, and just sent the two of them back to the palace. It is the commander who is responsible for guarding His Majesty.”

He Cong’s smile brightened. He was just about to say something when a voice rang out to announce the emperor’s arrival, and everyone present restrained themselves.

Yuan Jue’s expression was solemn as he walked slowly up to the high platform from behind and sat on the dragon chair.

At the same time, the doors to the main hall were opened and guards walked in carrying a person. It was Jiang Wang, who was in a state of complete disarray, his topknot disheveled.

Jiang Wang was forced to kneel in the middle of the hall, a mocking smile on his face that held no fear of death.

Yuan Jue’s expression was dark. Twisting his jade thumb ring, he asked: “Prime Minister Jiang, Father-in-law, you used the gold medal this emperor gave to you and the empress to break into the palace at night to assassinate me. I really did think highly of you. I thought you were intelligent.”

Jiang Wang’s face and body were coated in blood, not only his own, but also the splattered blood of the dead soldiers he had spent many years meticulously training and sent to operate in the palace.

However, the group of them had just entered the main hall where Huo Fenglie was reporting to the emperor, when they encountered such an unexpected situation. With Huo Fenglie obstructing them and the timely arrival of the Jinyiwei, they weren’t even able to see a corner of the emperor’s robes.

Sure enough, ah, the success rate of this kind of assassination was too low. Ridiculously low.

Jiang Wang spoke slowly: “There is no need to deceive me. Based on what you all have collected, ten lives likely aren’t enough for the emperor to take from me. Since he wanted me dead from the beginning, I had to give it a go. As Prime Minister, would I have to die as aggrieved as Liu Zhenqing? If I must die, I must also dare to take every opportunity before death.”

Jiang Wang’s mention of Liu Zhenqing truly displeased Yuan Jue.

Yuan Jue said: “Prime Minister Jiang, have I not treated you and your daughter well? How has it come to this point when your daughter is still empress? For what reason are you so greedy? You mean to replace me as emperor, but the empress has birthed no heirs yet. Do you plan to choose a prince of mine as a puppet, or do you plan to support someone else? Let me think…..”

“Treat us well? You don’t have any heirs yet? Yuan Jue, Yuan Jue, ah. You’re too cruel! No need to guess, I simply wanted to replace you. It’s better to be emperor than the emperor’s father-in-law. Haven’t you investigated everything? I’m behind all those cases going on in the south, and I’m also in contact with the rebels that were arrested not long ago. I also colluded with the Western Shu Kingdom. I did it all. I planned for so long, but never expected that Huo Fenglie would ruin everything.”

Jiang Wang looked at Huo Fenglie and said: “Huo Fenglie, you are truly Yuan Jue’s most loyal dog.”

Yuan Jue wore a displeased look: “Have you lost your mind? If you tell me honestly who else is working behind the scenes, I may be lenient.”

“Leniency is just a change from culling nine generations of my family to three generations. This minister really doesn’t care about them. Those people relied on me for their glory and wealth, so it is reasonable for them to be buried with me,” Jiang Wang said with an unyielding look.

Yuan Jue’s eyes slowly narrowed: “You truly won’t tell me?”

Jiang Wang’s expression was decidedly cold. He suddenly pointed at Zheng Wei and said: “Okay, ah, if you want to know, it’s him!”

Then he pointed at He Cong and said: “It’s also him!” 

He Cong immediately took a step back.

He also pointed at Huo Fenglie: “This master of achievements, it must be him!”

“Madman,” Zheng Wei said mildly.

Huo Fenglie recalled what Liu Qiao had overheard and knew in his heart that Jiang Wang would never give up anyone else. Torture was meaningless when faced with such a person.

Yuan Jue likely thought the same. Ever since Jiang Wang began randomly pointing fingers, his expression had grown increasingly worse. He knew that there was no point in taking him alive.

“Are you not afraid that I will interrogate the empress?” he asked.

“The empress has made no mistakes since he established herself in the palace. When she married into the royal family, she separated from mine. The emperor won’t take his anger out on the empress for my crimes. How could he explain it to the dynasty’s people?” Jiang Wang said with a smile. He didn’t fear that Yuan Jue would act openly. He was unable to for the sake of reputation. But he did fear Yuan Jue acting in secret, so he made an exchange with the people in the capital to save the empress at the cost of him taking all of the blame.

Jiang Wang wanted to use this to manipulate Yuan Jue before he died, which the emperor loathed to the utmost. His eyes flashed with killing intent: “Prime Minister Jiang, you have truly…..let down this emperor’s grace.”

Jiang Wang was on the brink of laughter. He stood abruptly and thrust an angry finger at Yuan Jue: “Grace. The emperor has only given me grace in two things. One was when I made a mistake when I first entered officialdom, and was demoted and nearly locked up in Dali Temple by Liu Zhenqing. He destroyed my ambitions in front of the rest of the family and humiliated me. I hated him at first, but then I realized this was just a ploy between the emperor and his minister.”

“He wanted to tame me, to make me serve you, the little emperor, loyally. So I pretended to be the villain so that you could be the hero, giving me the kindness of recognizing my worth and raising me up. You later discovered that I was developing more and more, without much control, and gave me your so-called second grace.”

“You took my daughter as empress to get me completely on your side and make me an enemy of the Three Kings. All of this was just for the sake of making the best use of me, not to mention all of the dirty things I would do for you later on. So don’t talk to me about grace. Perhaps it should be said that the emperor is heartless, and can only bite the hand that feeds him.” Jiang Wang no longer had any scruples, mocking him at whim.

“As things stand, at least it’s not like I’m being cast aside after serving my purpose. I’m better than that fool Liu Zhenqing. At least I did it for myself from beginning to end.”

Yuan Jue’s eyes slowly narrowed: “Since the Prime Minister is unwilling to provide information on other matters, there is no need for him to open his mouth.”

He glanced toward He Cong, who understood that although Jiang Wang was the prime minister, if there was no need to interrogate him, then there was no use in him being alive, lest he speak nonsense and damage the emperor’s reputation.

When he saw that He Cong was about to take action, Huo Fenglie hesitated for a moment. After all, Jiang Wang knew so much. Although they couldn’t get anything out of him, it would be a shame to kill him like this. Perhaps Qing-ge would like to have a word with him…..

Just as he was thinking it over, there was suddenly a loud crash from the roof.

“Defend the emperor!”

The sound of astir instantly caused Huo Fenglie and the other three to surround Yuan Jue.

They saw a man in black fall down, pick the stunned Jiang Wang up from the floor, and knock him unconscious before flying up with him through the open skylight.

“Pursue them!” Yuan Jue shouted immediately in response.

Zheng Wei gave chase at once. He Cong wanted Huo Fenglie to stay and protect the emperor, but when he went to go after them, he watched helplessly as Huo Fenglie used his qinggong to fly out.

He Cong could only hastily command the Jinyiwei outside to assist.

But half a shichen later, everyone returned empty handed. He Cong was somewhat in disbelief. That person just now was impressive, but how could he have escaped the pursuit of Zheng Wei and Huo Fenglie while carrying an unconscious person?

This news was upsetting. Everyone could only kneel down and ask the emperor for punishment.

Soon after, Jiang Wang regained consciousness to find that he was in a cemetery. Before him were two people with their backs turned, lighting incense on a tombstone.

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Chapter 130 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 132