In the study, Chen Long and Chen Hu were each holding a piece of human skin with a flying-bird tattoo, examining it carefully.
“To think someone in Moyun City would actually dare to lose their mind and try to assassinate you, Master—truly tired of living,” Chen Hu said in a rough voice after turning it over several times without finding anything noteworthy. “If you ask me, it must be people sent from the capital! Could it be that old emperor testing you?”
The Zhen State General’s achievements overshadowed his sovereign, and he commanded heavy troops. His prestige in the north far surpassed that of the old emperor. The common people only knew that the Zhen State General was their god of war, that the Duke of Rong’s residence would protect them from foreign tribes. They had little concept of the distant Central Plains court, and did not care in the slightest who actually sat on the dragon throne.
All the prefectures and counties in the north had long survived by relying on the Duke’s residence. Chen Ting could be said to command a hundred responses with a single call here; rebelling would be easy.
Even though he had never shown any unusual intentions—going wherever ordered to fight, returning home to rest once the fighting was done, never lingering anywhere—and even when returning to the capital to report for duty he always came and went alone, speaking to no one, staying not a single extra day beyond receiving his rewards—he still inevitably became a thorn in Emperor Zhou Xian’s side.
The old emperor had long wished to eliminate him, but the surrounding smaller states all eyed Great Zhou’s territory hungrily, harassing and invading every so often. Among them, the fierce grassland Hu tribes and the naturally strong Northern Barbarians were the hardest to deal with. Yet within the court, there was no second general who could replace Chen Ting.
Thus, whenever war was needed, the old emperor would behave himself for a while, smiling kindly like a benevolent old man whenever he saw the Zhen State General. Once the borders stabilized, however, he would start stirring trouble again. He wanted to reclaim military power but feared invasions from neighboring states; yet allowing Chen Ting to win battle after battle only made his reputation in the north grow ever more illustrious, which made the emperor feel increasingly uneasy.
So sending a few assassins to cause him some trouble… was not entirely impossible.
After hearing his younger brother’s words, Chen Long stroked his chin thoughtfully. “His Majesty already humiliated the General by bestowing that kind of marriage. Sending assassins on top of that—wouldn’t that be excessive? I don’t think they were sent by the emperor.”
“But there really is no family in Moyun City that raises this kind of death warrior. This flying swallow isn’t the mark of any jianghu organization either. It looks somewhat familiar to me, but I can’t recall it for the moment. Give me three days, General—I will definitely find out.”
Chen Ting nodded. “Go handle this. And also…”
A trace of gloom flashed through his dark eyes. “You’re right. I risk my life out there, guarding his realm for him, and that old thing just keeps pushing his luck. If I don’t do something, people will really think I’m a coward.”
“Chen Hu.”
“Your subordinate is here!”
“Give them a lesson. Do it cleanly,” Chen Ting said lightly.
“Yes, sir!”
The brothers took their orders and left. Chen Ting stared at the tattooed human skin on the table for a while, a contemplative glint flashing in his eyes. In the end, he instructed the cold-faced guard at the study door, “Fuyao, dispose of these.”
“Yes, Master.”
Inside the Furong Grand Tavern, a young man in white robes holding a folding fan leaned by the window, watching the bustling traffic in the streets below. Besides Han people with yellow skin and black hair, there were also foreign merchants with blond hair and blue eyes, hawking their wares in halting Great Zhou official speech—bleating lambs or calves chewing on grass, along with various strange curiosities rarely seen in Great Zhou.
A smile curved his lips, lending him an air of carefree elegance. After watching with interest for a while, he turned back and called to the person behind him who was sprawled among beautiful women, drunk beyond reason. “Ziliang, come take a look—this is truly fascinating. The border is ablaze with war, yet Moyun City still has so many foreign peddlers and common folk from the Hu tribes… Who was it that told me before we came that the northern cities were all uncivilized backwaters? This level of prosperity clearly surpasses even the capital.”
The young man called Ziliang staggered as he grabbed a wine jug and struggled to his feet. A beauty beside him hurried to support him, only to be shoved aside.
This man likewise had a handsome, youthful face. His sapphire-blue brocade robe was rumpled and loose, exposing the fair skin of his chest. His dark hair was bound with a hollow purple-gold crown. Even with his face flushed red with drunkenness, he still carried a certain allure.
Gu Ziliang swayed his way to the window, stared outside with bleary eyes for a moment, then snorted coldly. “No matter how much they dress it up, it’s still a backwater… Yet she would rather come to this wretched place than trust me and let me take her away.”
His heart ached unbearably. He covered his face, wanting to cry, yet unwilling to make a sound out of pride. Irritably, he ordered the beauties to get out. Only then did he slide down against the wall, muttering, “She’s already married… I came a step too late. Mingyi, tell me—what am I supposed to do now?”
The white-robed youth paused in fanning himself and bent down to look at him. “Heir Apparent, you’re really crying?”
He genuinely did not understand. “There are countless beauties in the world. What can’t you have? Why cling to this one?”
Gu Ziliang said, “You don’t know a damn thing. Niannian and I were childhood sweethearts. We promised each other when we were young… But why did it turn out like this?”
Ji Mingyi tried to persuade him. “If she had married an ordinary man, it would be manageable. But do you know who your little sweetheart married? She dared to marry the Zhen State General. Are you going to snatch someone from that madman? On his own turf?”
“So what if it’s Chen Ting!” Gu Ziliang roared, his face full of fury. “No one can take my Niannian away from me!!”
“…” Ji Mingyi wanted to curse him. “If you loved her that much, why didn’t you marry her back then? You insisted on defying your mother and raising a chamber maid as a concubine. What good girl would accept having a concubine brought in before the proper wife even entered the household? Now everything is settled. Aside from reminiscing, I don’t advise you to do anything at all.”
Gu Ziliang wiped his face and said dejectedly, “I was possessed back then. I thought Niannian was destined to be my wife, that she should be magnanimous and virtuous. Making a fuss over a mere chamber maid seemed too childish.”
“I thought she was destined to be mine… But the emperor struck too suddenly. From the moment I got the news to the Yongning Marquis’s residence being confiscated, not even three days passed. I had no time to arrange anything.”
“I never expected the Xiahou residence to push her out to marry Chen Ting! They all deserve to die!” A vicious glint flashed in Gu Ziliang’s eyes.
Seeing him like this, Ji Mingyi suddenly felt a bad premonition. “You didn’t already do something, did you? You took revenge on Chen Ting?”
Gu Ziliang sneered. “I left in a hurry and didn’t bring many people, but every one of them was a top expert from my household.”
“You’re a fool!” Ji Mingyi was shocked pale, wishing he could immediately cut ties with this idiot. “Do you think this is the capital, where Prince Bao will protect you no matter what you do? You actually dared to assassinate Chen Ting?!”
“Go, go, go—leave right now and return to the capital!” He called for two men to hoist Gu Ziliang up. “Heir Apparent, I still want to keep my little business going. It’s one thing if you get yourself into trouble, but don’t come back and drag that madman here. I can’t afford to host him.”