It was a dark and windy night. A suitable day for committing murder and arson.
Once Chu Changge, Wei Zhentian and the four men South, East, North and West arrived outside the Liang army's camp, they split up into three directions.
South, East, North and West attacked the Liang army from four directions, creating the illusion of a surprise attack by the Yan army. Chu Changge, on the other hand, visited his 'old friend' in the Liang army camp alone.
"Then what should I do?" Wei Zhentian couldn't help but ask. It was because it seemed that Chu Changge and the others were already planning to start taking action, while he hadn't yet been assigned with any task.
"You stay right here." Chu Changge said after turning his head back.
Wei Zhentian was stunned. "And then what?" There should always be a reason for him to stay here, right?
"There's no then."
"......I didn't come just to see you get caught." Wei Zhentian argued.
Chu Changge raised his dashing eyebrows and stated, "We won't let ourselves be caught just for you to see either."
Wei Zhentian did not want to beat around the bush any further and told Chu Changge directly, "I am not here to watch a play. Tell me, what exactly do you need me to do?"
"What can you do?" Chu Changge asked.
Wei Zhentian was silent for a few seconds and said, "No matter what you tell me to do, I will do my best."
"In that case, you will......" Chu Changge thought for a moment and said, "Just do as you see fit." After saying that, he left while staying away from the moonlight.
Wei Zhentian was dumbfounded. What did he mean by doing as he saw fit? With a slight twitch at the corners of his mouth, Wei Zhentian couldn't help but cry out the unfairness in his heart. He was also the Great General of Yanzhou, and he couldn't even do a stalking job for Chu Changge. This was an extreme act of bullying!
But then again, Chu Changge was indeed an extraordinary person. His excellent martial arts skills, outstanding vision, and well-thought-out long-term strategy showed that he had heaven and earth under his control. Sometimes, especially when he was sitting in the principal general's chair, he looked like an Emperor, full of confidence, dignified and respectable. He considered everybody and everything beneath his notice. He also had this belief that no one else should be respected other than himself. Despite that, one couldn't help but obey him willingly.
Wei Zhentian was lost in his own thoughts when he suddenly noticed, from the corner of his eye, that a fire had broken out in the east direction. Soon the south, west and north parts were also in flames, turning the Liang army into an uproar. With the troops already starving and the horses in disarray, now, the fire had thrown both men and horses were off their feet.
It seemed that South, East, North and West had begun their operations.
Wei Zhentian immediately raised his guard. Although he didn't know what Chu Changge's intention was to leave him here, or if there was none at all, he had to play a role since he was already involved in this operation. He would do as he saw fit. At the very least, he could still collect their bodies if the operation ever failed.
*
As soon as South, East, North and West issued their signals, Chu Changge sneaked into a tent.
"Mister Shi Er, I trust you have been well since we parted?" Before the words left his mouth, Chu Changge was already standing in the middle of the tent.
Mister Shi Er looked up sharply and was overjoyed to see that the visitor was Chu Changge. "Ah, Chu Changge, you're finally here!"
Chu Changge was not surprised by Mister Shi Er's enthusiasm, for he had never believed in Mister Shi Er's defection to King Liang Jr. It was not that he believed in Mister Shi Er's loyalty. He just believed in his own strength――even if Mister Shi Er had a great backer, no one would dare betray the Mojiao Sect or him, Chu Changge. [+]
"What's that look on your face? You don't think I really betrayed the Murong Mansion, do you?" Mister Shi Er's eyes glared as he grunted, "You should know that even if I had the guts to betray the Murong Mansion, I wouldn't have the guts to betray you. Everyone in the jianghu knows that Chu Changge, the Sect Leader of the Mojiao Sect, hates traitors the most. Anyone who betrays you won't have a road leading to the sky, nor door into the earth as they will ultimately die without a burial site."
There was a saying in jianghu, 'once you joined the Mojiao Sect, you would be a devil forever'. That's why he would rather be a bricklayer in the Murong Mansion than 'enjoy the peace and quiet' in the Mojiao Sect. In any case, Murong Mansion was an influential, wealthy family which operated legally after all. In the future, when his future generations come out to mingle, they would have some confidence when they talked about their family background. The main fact that their ancestor was a mere bricklayer of the Murong Mansion would not be a threat to others. Even if it could not be used to scare people, they at least would not be attacked by the crowd, right?
"It's good that you know." Chu Changge coldly said.
As soon as Mister Shi Er saw Chu Changge's grave expression, it suffocated his heart. He couldn't help but sigh that some people really should be born with a smile on their face. Even though most of the time, it was a smile that hid a dagger in it.
Chu Changge asked, "Where is King Sheng being held?"
"You're not going to ask why I am in the middle of the Liang army camp?"
"I'm not interested in it right now."
"It was Huberg who invited me here." When Mister Shi Er saw Chu Changge frown a little, it implied that Chu Changge was listening to him. So Mister Shi Er continued, "A few months ago, I was trapped in the underground chamber of the Jianghu Inn by Li Wunai, and it was Huberg who saved me. He told me that you were still alive and claimed that you had the destiny to be the Emperor......"
"You believe in his nonsense?" Chu Changge interrupted Mister Shi Er with some annoyance.
Mister Shi Er was originally bowing his head. But when he heard Chu Changge's words, he raised his head and looked straight at him, questioning, "You don't believe his words?"
Chu Changge raised his chin slightly and said, "Not even a word."
"If you don't believe them, then why are you looking so annoyed?" Mister Shi Er still looked straight at him, not allowing him to escape his gaze. "Given your character, you should have scoffed at things that you don't believe in, but instead, you reacted with annoyance. Annoyed that he might be right. Maybe not all, but at least partly right, and that's why you're annoyed. Is that right?"
In response to Mister Shi Er's analysis, Chu Changge became speechless and remained silent for a long time before coldly asked, "I'll only ask you one question. Where is King Sheng?"
"Why are you so nervous about King Sheng's life? I thought you wouldn't worry about anyone's life, even your own, except for Murong Yunshu." Mister Shi Er's eyes were deep as if he had seen something in Chu Changge.
"I ask you once more. Where is King Sheng? Don't make me ask you for the third time." Chu Changge looked down at Mister Shi Er, who was a head shorter than him. The twinkling in his eyes was like they had been dosed with water, a sign that he nearly exhausted his kindness.
Mister Shi knew, if he answered with irrelevant statements again, he would die in return. Therefore, this time, he no longer ignored Chu Changge's question and replied, "The underground stone prison, under King Liang Jr's tent."
Having got the answer he wanted, Chu Changge did not linger for another half second and disappeared from Mister Shi Er's tent in an instant. As soon as Chu Changge left, a man walked in from the tent's entrance――Huberg.
"Chu Changge wouldn't worry about other people's lives for no reason unless that person's surname was Chu or Murong." Mister Shi Er mumbled as he looked in the direction where Chu Changge had disappeared.
Huberg stepped forward and stated, "King Sheng's surname is neither Chu nor Murong. His surname is Hua."
Mister Shi Er abruptly turned his head and looked at Huberg with a shocked expression. "What you mean is......"
Huberg smiled but remained silent as he nodded slightly.
"How could......" Mister Shi Er suddenly remembered something and said, "That's right. Chu Changge is related to King Sheng. King Sheng is the orphan son of Emperor Tiancheng. And Chu Changge's aunt, Fairy Yaoyue's dajie, Fairy Mingyue, had a relationship with Emperor Taicheng. This matter was widely circulated in the jianghu at that time."
"So I suspect that Chu Changge is not the son of Fairy Yaoyue. Rather, he was born from Fairy Mingyue and Emperor Tiancheng's union."
"But that doesn't make him the Emperor that Heaven intended him to be."
"But this can prove that my divination is well-founded," Huberg said.
Mister Shi Er nodded his head in understanding, with a dazed look on his face. In fact, he was not interested in Chu Changge's heavenly destiny. He had only come here because he was now a member of the Murong Mansion. Since Murong Mansion provided economic support for King Sheng, King Sheng had to be the victorious party. Otherwise, Murong Mansion would lose everything it had invested in.
*
When Chu Changge arrived at Hua Yeli's tent, Hua Yeli was also waiting for him, fully prepared with wine and delicacies.
"Your arrival is a little later than I expected." Hua Yeli said calmly while raising his glass.
Without hesitation, Chu Changge sat directly opposite him and stated, "I don't want to waste time with you. Let King Sheng go, and I will let you live for a few more days."
Hua Yeli stared coldly into the cup and said in a faint voice, "You should know that there is a reason why I am not on guard against you, just as I know that it would be easy for you to take my life."
Chu Changge's eyes sank when he heard what Hua Yeli was saying before he spoke, "If you have any other chips, just take them out and see if they are worth your life."
"How long has it been since you last saw Murong Yunshu?" Hua Yeli asked. [+]
Before the words were out of his mouth, a murderous aura surfaced in Chu Changge's eyes. "Are you trying to tell me that you have her?" Within two months apart, he had sent her daily letters, and she had replied to every one of them. This morning, he even received a letter from her saying that all was well. She's going to be okay. She's really going to be okay......
Hua Yeli did not answer Chu Changge's question but asked him another one of his, "How long have you not paying attention to Chu Xiyue's words and actions?"
Chu Changge was stunned again. Xiyue......it seemed like it had been a long time since he had paid any attention to Xiyue, and she always circled around Yunshu and Little Murong.
Seeing that Chu Changge did not say anything, Hua Yeli added, "Don't worry, I will not kill Murong Yunshu. As for your son......" After a pause, Hua Yanli raised his eyes to look directly at him and said through clenched teeth, "He should not have come into this world at all!"
Crash――cups, bowls, plates and dishes shattered all over the floor. The table was instantly turned into wooden crumbs, and it piled on the floor like sand.
And Hua Yeli, who was still calm and collected a second ago, now had his face turned red as he was choked by Chu Changge. "Do you not know how much I want to kill you? Are you tired of living your life?" Chu Changge's voice was gloomily ice-cold to the extreme as if it was the sound of a locked soul coming out from hell.
"Kill me, and you will never see your son again." Even though his life and death were at stake, Hua Yeli remained indifferent and composed as a god.
Chu Changge's eyes were tense, and the strength of his hands increased a bit. Seeing that Hua Yeli started to roll his eyes, as long as Chu Changge clenched his fingers a bit more, he could get rid of this menace.
However, Chu Changge eventually loosened his hand.
He didn't dare to bet on his family's life.
*
When Murong Yunshu opened her eyes, it felt as if she had slept for centuries, and her head felt terrible. Looking at the arrangement in front of her, Murong Yunshu gradually regained her senses, followed by a low cry, "Murong!" Looking around, there was no sign of Little Murong.
Murong Yunshu suddenly felt dizzy, as if the sky was falling. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a milking voice could be heard. Murong Yunshu was overjoyed and casually grabbed an outer upper garment and wrapped it around her body. She got out of bed with her bare feet and looked around while calling out, "Murong, Murong......"
"Dad......dad......"
Murong Yunshu followed the sound and saw Little Murong lying under the bed, with only his small head poking out. He looked at her with a confused expression, as if he was asking, 'What are you doing?'
Noob Translator's Musing
I have to change Bewitching Fairy Yue's name to Fairy Yaoyue since I don't know how to correctly translate her older sister's name 明月仙子 (mingyue=bright moon, xianzi=fairy). So I just translated it as Fairy Mingyue. 🙇🏻♀️ for the inconvenience.
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Black Belly Wife