King Song took another light sip of tea.
Wang Chong silently smiled. He truly couldn’t understand the path of tea, nor did he aspire toward it, so he couldn’t taste the value in this tea.
“The situation in the capital is very strange,” King Song abruptly said.
“Oh?”
Wang Chong blinked in surprise. King Song wasn’t someone to just randomly comment without reason.
“You might not know this, but your residence has already exceeded the initial standards in some places. These were things that the craftsmen did on their own without telling King Qi.”
King Song smiled.
Wang Chong was shaken by these words. He was rarely involved in such affairs, and he truly had not known of this.
“But the Bureau of Works… hasn’t it always been under King Qi’s control? How could they tolerate it?” Wang Chong asked in shock.
“Heh, you think they wouldn’t know what the craftsmen under them were doing? This time, the key to the early completion of your King of Foreign Lands Residence was those officials in the Bureau of Works. This is also why King Qi is so furious.
“More than four hundred lives were lost in this border incident, and the Confucian Sect, instead of trying to find a solution, tried its best to suppress and diminish it. Not even the officials belonging to the Confucian Sect could stomach this, but they didn’t dare to protest. However, they used their actions to show their support, and this was how your residence came to be so swiftly constructed.
“In this aspect, Wang Chong, you performed splendidly!”
King Song put down his teacup and lightly stroke his beard, a look of praise in his eyes.
Wang Chong couldn’t help but be taken aback by King Song’s words. The First Prince and Confucian Sect acted in unison within the court, and Wang Chong had almost instinctively paid the court no attention. If King Song hadn’t brought it up, he would have never noticed the changes wrought by the border incident.
King Song smiled and explained. “Heh, there are not so many sects and clans, and the Confucian Sect and Confucian school are not as powerful as imagined. As they say, justice resides in the hearts of the people, and everyone can decide for their own what is right and wrong. Justice and righteousness are concepts that exist beyond sects and factions.”
As a senior of Wang Chong’s, he could never rest easy, so no matter what happened, he always had to go to court and do all he could to help Wang Chong. But this time, King Song was greatly relieved.
The times had changed. In the past, he had once been the backer of the Bureau of Military Personnel, one of the standing pillars of the Great Tang’s military, but now, the younger generation had matured. Even if he weren’t around, Wang Chong would be able to skillfully navigate the situation, enduring the pressure of the First Prince, King Qi, and the Confucian Sect to emerge with a beautiful victory.
This was the passing of the torch. He had spent more than half his life working for the Great Tang, never once able to relax, but now, he could draw his hand away and let Wang Chong and the other juniors hone themselves in the court and uphold the Great Tang.
Wang Chong pensively looked at King Song, his mind in turmoil.
King Song merely smiled.
After some time, the old butler slowly walked out, his voice ringing through the hall. “Your Highness, it’s getting late. It’s about time to start with that other matter.”
“Ah!”
Hearing the butler’s words, King Song blinked and came back to his senses.
“It’s about time. Wang Chong, I have some matters to attend to. Until next time.”
King Song stood up as he spoke.
“Your Highness, let me see you out!”
Wang Chong stood up and walked with King Song to the gate. He watched in slight confusion as King Song hastily boarded his carriage and went off into the distance.
For some reason, King Song had seemed very rushed and anxious as he was leaving. Wang Chong had always taken King Song to be a calm and composed man, always taking his time. This was the first time he had ever seen the man so anxious.
“I wonder where he’s going?”
Recalling the old butler’s words, Wang Chong had a sudden thought, but since King Song had said nothing, he decided to put the matter aside and return to his residence.
……
As Wang Chong was gradually suppressing the Confucian Sect, in the serenity of the darkness deep within the Imperial Palace, progress was also being made.
In the northeast corner of the Imperial Palace, whoosh! A figure flew across the sky like some large bird.
“Hah!”
Not long after that figure had gone, strange laughter came from a dark corner of the palace, and two figures, one tall and one short, emerged.
“They endured for so long, but they finally lost their patience!”
One of these figures held a cane and had extremely vicious eyes. If one looked carefully, one could see that his lips were unnaturally twisted, his muscles seemed loose, and a few of his teeth were missing. This was something that usually only could be seen with the mute, as they didn’t use their lip muscles as much. If a member of the martial arts world were here, they would be able to instantly recognize the man as the illustrious Earth Mute.
But this did not mean that Earth Mute didn’t know how to speak. The sharp observer would have noticed that the voice just now had come from his abdomen.
Abdomen Voice Art!
This was an art that Earth Mute had cultivated to make up for his natural infirmity. By vibrating the abdomen muscles with Stellar Energy, he could create sounds and make it seem like he wasn’t mute at all.
“Hahah, anyone who dares to make an enemy of His Highness is truly seeking death. What does it matter that he’s the First Prince? He’s made an enemy of the King of Foreign Lands, making him an enemy of the entire martial arts world!” the taller individual in the pair said. This one was naturally Heaven Deaf.
Just like Earth Mute was a natural mute, Heaven Deaf was born deaf, but through her astonishing talent, she had cultivated an ancient art that could allow her to use Psychic Energy and Stellar Energy to sense sound waves to understand what others were saying.
Most importantly, the pair’s natural infirmities had made them cultivate special arts that granted them surveillance and pursuit abilities that few martial artists could match. One was skilled in an art that could observe the heavens while the other had an art that could listen to the earth. When the two of them worked together, they could see every part of the Imperial Palace excluding the Sage Emperor’s residence. Even a fly would find it hard to escape their eyes and ears.
This was why Wang Chong had sent them into the Imperial Palace.
“Inform Commander Zhao that there are nine ‘flies’ tonight, approaching the Fifth Prince’s location from various locations. Tell him that we can close the net!”
Heaven Deaf suddenly turned to an Imperial Army soldier hidden in the shadows.
“Yes!”
The soldier had eyes brimming with respect as he turned around.
A gentle breeze wafted through the quiet night, but an invisible killing intent was sweeping through the air. In the darkness that no ordinary people could see through, numerous figures were converging on Fifth Prince Li Heng’s residence.
But while an invisible killing intent was seeping through the Imperial Palace, the Fifth Prince’s residence was brightly lit. Maids and eunuchs were completely unaware of what was going on, some of the maids even yawning in fatigue.
“Are they ready?”
An indistinct mental wave traveled through the darkness.
“Our superiors have given the death order. No matter what, we cannot fail!”
“Hmph, relax; everything has been taken care of. Within one hour, not even a fly will be able to approach the Fifth Prince’s palace. All of the Imperial Army soldiers have already been ordered away. The only people in that palace are the Fifth Pri
nce and some maids who don’t know anything.”
On a roof not far from the Fifth Prince’s palace, several figures wearing black assassination clothes were silently waiting. Their bodies were like those of leopards, bursting with explosive power that was so restrained and compressed that they barely seemed to exist.
Chapter 1614 - Catching a Turtle in a Jar! (II)
Chapter 1614: Catching a Turtle in a Jar! (II)
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
After some time, a voice suddenly said, “Move!”
Like arrows being loosed, several figures flew out of the darkness from various corners and converged on the Fifth Prince’s palace.
The moment they landed, they threw out hair-thin needles that knocked the maids unconscious before they could even react. They moved rapidly, passing through the various corridors and entering the Fifth Prince’s bedroom.
Only a few seconds had elapsed.
Swish!
The moment they spotted the Fifth Prince reading a book by the light of an oil lamp, they sent out bolts of Sword Qi and all kinds of assassination weapons, all of them blasting into the Fifth Prince’s body.
But they did not hear the sounds of their weapons cutting into flesh. Boom! The Fifth Prince’s body exploded, showering the room with wood shavings.
“Not good! It’s a trap!”
The flying wooden pieces caused them all to grimace, as they immediately understood that they had taken the bait.
“Run!”
All of them wanted to run, but it was too late.
“Catch the assassins!”
A strident call shattered the silence in the northeast corner of the Imperial Palace.
A moment later, there was a flurry of footsteps and a stampede of hooves. The eyes of the assassins went dark and their faces paled.
“Hmph, after hiding for so long, you finally couldn’t help but take the bait!”
Thunderous shouts resounded through the Imperial Palace, and there was no telling how many Imperial Army soldiers were converging on the Fifth Prince’s residence.
Zhao Fengchen stood under a bright lantern, a smile on his lips. In this operation, he was only responsible for surrounding the palace and preventing the assassins from fleeing. Wang Chong had already arranged for others to capture them.
Even if those assassins grew wings, they would find it difficult to escape.
Zhao Fengchen had seen the abilities of the men Wang Chong had sent and knew that they would not fail.
“Your Highness Fifth Prince, I said that they would move tonight. You believe me now, right?” Zhao Fengchen said without turning his head.
The Imperial Army soldier standing behind him, on careful inspection, was not any soldier at all, but the Fifth Prince who should have been in his quarters.
“These scoundrels are too bold! First Imperial Brother is trying to push me into a dead end!”
Li Heng looked in fear at his residence. Wang Chong had long ago said that he should fully cooperate with Zhao Fengchen, but he had still been somewhat doubtful. Fortunately, he had listened, or else he would have found it difficult to escape this disaster.
Striking now after waiting for more than a month, their foes had clearly come completely confident. Unfortunately, they had underestimated him and were unaware that Wang Chong had also been waiting for them this entire time.
“It’s enough. Time to close the net. Your Highness, come with me to take a look!”
Seeing that the time was about right, Zhao Fengchen strode forward.
Meanwhile, in the Eastern Palace, First Prince Li Ying was trembling, his eyes wide open in disbelief.
“What?! Li Heng wasn’t in his palace? All the men we sent were captured?!”
“Yes! It seems like they were already prepared. All of our men were captured. Six men committed suicide, but three were taken alive!”
“Bastard!”
The veins on the First Prince’s forehead bulged as he smashed a fist on the table next to him in rage.
“Wang Chong! It must be Wang Chong!”
The First Prince’s eyes surged with killing intent.
“Pass on my order! Have all our men change positions!”
“Yes! Your Highness!”
……
In a secretive area of the Imperial Palace, a stalwart and fierce martial artist, his hands dripping with blood, emerged from a pitch-black room.
“How was it? Get anything?” Zhao Fengchen asked.
“Ha, did he really think he was a slab of steel? When I come in, no mouth can keep silent! The location is here. TIme is short. Tell them to move out!”
The man wiped his hands with a towel and passed over a paper.
When it came to interrogation, these men were far superior to government officials. ‘Assassin’ was merely a profession, a status, and once it was removed, what was inside was only an ordinary person.
Since they were human, information could be extracted.
“Many thanks!”
Zhao Fengchen was elated. A few moments later, an eagle took off with a sharp cry.
A few seconds later, the eagle came back down. A palm on the ground reached out to receive this eagle.
“Everyone, they’ve found it!”
“It’s time to repay our favor to the King of Foreign Lands!”
“Truly suicidal! They could have provoked anyone else, but they chose the King of Foreign Lands. Anyone who means harm to the King of Foreign Lands is the enemy of both the righteous and evil paths!”
“Let’s go! Kill them all! No survivors!”
Countless martial artists in the darkness began to move according to the order.
In the northwest expedition, if not for Wang Chong, they would have all died deep underground. When it came to martial arts or to individual character, the martial artists of both the righteous and evil paths felt nothing but utmost respect for this high noble of the court.
Even Righteous Alliance Lord Song Yuanyi who had once doggedly pursued him had become his friend and ally.
No one except the King of Foreign Lands could have obtained the full support of the entire martial arts world.
Swish! Swish! Swish! A few moments later, all of them had gone.
……
Time slowly passed.
“Your Highness! It’s bad! All of our men were killed! No survivors!”
An Eastern Palace guard tumbled into the palace, his entire body drenched in cold sweat.
“Bastard! What nonsense are you spouting!? Didn’t I tell them to immediately get out?!” the First Prince angrily replied.
“Your Highness, it’s been confirmed. After sending the order, we didn’t receive a reply, and when we went to look, we found that the place was covered in corpses. It seems like our men were suddenly attacked while leaving, and the enemy attack was so fierce that they were all killed in no time at all…”
The guard’s voice began to dwindle away, and his head lowered, unable to meet the gaze of the First Prince.
Boom!
The First Prince staggered backward in shock.
“How could this be!?”
The First Prince felt like he had been dealt a heavy blow.
The assassins he had gathered outside the city were a group that he had managed to organize through painstaking effort, and each one of them was devoted to his cause. As a prince, he had many things that he could not do, for which he could use this special force.
But after building up this force which had been wholly his own, they had been annihilated in a single night. One of the First Prince’s arms had been cut off.
“Wang Chong! It was you! It must have been you!”
After his initial shock, the First Prince began to tremble in rage.
His fifth brother, Li Heng, did not have this capability. No ordinary person could work with such speed and precision, first ruining the assassination attempt in the palace and then annihilating his assassins outside the ci
ty.
Only Li Heng’s backer, Wang Chong, could do all this.
“Why? Why do you insist on refusing me and allying with that mediocre Li Heng? Just how can I not compare to him? Why must you force me?!”
The lanterns in the Eastern Palace swayed, the First Prince’s face twisting in their light.
Wang Chong had set up the Public Order Squad without his approval, completely bypassing him, and then he had even brought up a law made by Gaozu, humiliating the First Prince.
In the border incident, the First Prince had felt Ishbara Khagan’s letter to be a stab to the heart. Wang Chong had sent four hundred men without his approval, completely ignoring his authority as regent.
And this time, Wang Chong had forced him into a corner.
“Why do you insist on being my enemy?!”
The First Prince gnashed his teeth, his face growing more savage by the second.
There was no denying Wang Chong’s talent for battle, and his grasp of strategy and tactics was also undisputed. He had imagined more than once how if he obtained Wang Chong’s help, then once he was enthroned, the two would complement each other’s flaws, reenacting the Sage Emperor’s friendship with Duke Jiu.
But Wang Chong had disappointed him again and again!
He seemed set on pushing him into a dead end. The First Prince’s face turned ashen as his killing intent surged.
The officials of the court would have never dared to believe that the wise, upright, gentle, and courteous First Prince could be like this. As for the guard, his face was ghastly pale and he scarcely dared to breathe.
If this scene ever got out, his head would probably be the first on the chopping block.
Silence reigned in the hall. At that moment, no one could have guessed that Wang Chong’s provocations had increased the First Prince’s desire for power to its maximum level.
“Wang Chong, you’ve forced me to do this!”
The First Prince’s eyes flashed with a sharp light and his face turned cold.
“Pass on my order! Move up the operation.”
“Yes!”
……
Whoosh!
Once everything was settled, a carrier pigeon took off from the palace and flew into the newly built quarters of the grandiose King of Foreign Lands Residence.
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 996
