This mysterious person that had just entered the hidden chamber was called Lin Feng. He was a burly man with a sturdily built body and the commanding presence of a general. His bearded face was rather solemn, displaying a warrior’s frankness and dignity. Despite his tanned skin, a scar that ran right across his forehead was clearly visible, and it added a hint of savagery. His pitch-black eyes similarly shone with an air of viciousness.
As he bowed to Wen Panshi, he held the sword that rarely left his side. “General.” But he got no response.
Wen Panshi had been displeased since he came in. After a while, he said, “Vice-General Lin, do you know what you have done wrong?”
“This subordinate doesn’t know.”
“Who gave you the order to assassinate Prince Rong?” His voice was deep and powerful, even though it was slightly muffled.
“No one.”
Bam! Wen Panshi slammed the table, and stepped forward to quickly pull out the sword from Lin Feng’s grasp. A flash of silver sliced through the air. In the blink of an eye, the tip of the sword pointed at Lin Feng’s neck. Lin Feng was only a hair’s breadth away from being stabbed in the throat.
“Father!” Wen Xian instantly rose up to stop him, only to see Wen Panshi still holding the sword at Lin Feng’s neck without the slightest intention of retracting it. He turned his wrist up and the sword moved with it. The scene was one that would inspire cold sweat in anyone.
“Do you realize your mistake?” Wen Panshi roared.
Lin Feng had no intention of avoiding blame. Rather, he raised his chin, “This subordinate made a mistake and is willing to be punished. The general may kill me if he wishes.” Firm and unyielding!
“Although I watched you grow up and promised your father that I would take care of you, a mistake is a mistake, and cannot be tolerated.”
“Then how about the dog we call an Emperor? Is he free of blame?”
“You…”
“He killed my father. The son is obliged to pay his father’s debts. I want him to taste the pain of bereavement as well!”
The next moment, Wen Panshi picked up the sword and ruthlessly stabbed Lin Feng’s thigh. Skin and flesh were cut open, blood flowing freely. He fell on one knee in pain, and kneeled in front of Wen Panshi.
“You are the only one left in the Lin family. Your father held my hand before he died and asked me to nurture you to adulthood so that you may serve our master in the future. However, you almost ruined the entire plan due to a personal grudge. Do you know that you’re not only responsible for your own life but also those of our 100,000 soldiers? How could your father rest in peace if he knew what you have done?”
Although he was reprimanding Lin Feng, Wen Panshi had tears in his eyes. Lin Feng lowered his head and did not say a word.
“It’s fine if you merely killed that damned emperor’s son today, but your men almost took the little heir’s life!”
What?! He suddenly raised his head, “It’s impossible. I had sent an order that the little heir cannot be harmed at all.”
“Bloody battles are chaotic and leave no room for bargaining. You can’t control who lives or dies. If the little heir had died, there is no need for any of us to remain alive either. Do you understand?”
Lin Feng was stunned. He punched the ground and said, “General, it is the fault of this subordinate. I promise that this will never happen again. Please punish me.”
Wen Panshi’s anger had dissipated by now. He heaved a sigh of relief, “Fortunately, fortunately, the little heir is safe and sound.” He sighed heavily again. After a good while, he tossed the sword in his hand back to Lin Feng, “Stand up.”
Lin Feng looked up, the stubbornness in his eyes had finally lessened a little. He stretched out his hand and took the sword, then jabbed it on the ground to push himself up, before he put the sword back into its sheath.
Wen Panshi sat back in his seat and said, “You have caused so much trouble that Prince Rong has surely begun to investigate the assassination. You must handle it cleanly, and cannot leave a single clue fro them.”
“Understood.”
“Okay, you should be on your way, and don’t attract attention.”
Lin Feng bowed at him and left. However, not long after he went out, Wen Xian caught up with him. “You were indeed a bit reckless today. I know you have always wanted to avenge your father, but you can’t rush things. We’ve waited for so many years already. Now that the little heir has been found, we are approaching the completion of our big plan. There must be no mistakes at this juncture.”
Without glancing at Wen Xian, Lin Feng kept marching forward in the secret tunnel, “You had better take care of yourself first. In recent years, you have been acting like a puppet.”
Wen Xian suddenly stopped walking.
Sensing the lack of response, Lin Feng realized that he had said the wrong thing. He turned back to Wen Xian, who had a hurt expression, “Don’t take what I said just now seriously, I didn’t mean it.”
“It’s okay, so many years have passed anyway.”
“Yeah, you should also let go of it.”
He gave a faint smile, “Who hasn’t done a few dastardly things in their life?”
Lin Feng patted him on the shoulder. “Okay, no need to see me off any further, I’m leaving.” Then he left.
Wen Xian remained where he was. The dim tunnel was only lit up by the candles placed every few meters. The faint candlelight reflected on Wen Xian’s face, revealing a seemingly gentle and elegant man. Since the incident three years ago, he had remained melancholy. It had been a long time since anyone had heard his hearty laughter.
He stroked the dizi in his hand, and then slowly caressed the jade pendant hanging on the flute for a long while. As he did so, his expression became heavier and heavier.
……
Early next morning, Zuo Yao rushed to Anchang Court. When he heard what had happened last night, his heart almost jumped to his throat. He was nervous all the way, for he feared that Jing Rong, the Buddha, would be injured. After all, his position and his life were still hanging in the balance. If something happened to Jing Rong, the imperial court would investigate him, and he would definitely die. How could he not panic?
Therefore, when he saw that Jing Rong was still alive and kicking, his heart finally settled down. “Your Highness, this lowly official will send more people to find the assassins. It is this lowly official’s fault that the prince was nearly assassinated.” His voice trembled.
Jing Rong was fiddling with a few sticks of bamboo he had just cut down in the yard. He took a knife to scrape away the fine hairs on the bamboo and polish it until it was smooth. He kept scraping it with his knife until he was satisfied that it no longer had any sharp edges.
He glanced at Zuo Yao who was standing next to him, “Magistrate Zuo, you don’t have to take all the blame. This matter has nothing to do with your Yufu yamen. This prince will handle it myself, so just focus on investigating the disaster relief silver.”
“Yes, and... Your Highness asked this lowly official to find the records of the merchants who passed through Yufu in recent years, and this lowly has sorted them out overnight.” He handed over the notebook he had prepared in his sleeve while speaking.
Jing Rong took it and browsed before he closed it again, “You can now go back first. If something happens, this prince will notify you.” Without giving him a chance to speak, Jing Rong walked off with his back facing him.
He went to visit Ji Yunshu and gave her the bamboo stick he scraped smooth. “I will ask Zijin to teach you some self-defense techniques the next few days. Use this bamboo stick as a sword and practice well.”
“I can’t.” She refused immediately, “It’s fine if you wanted me to take a knife to open a belly, but it’s a bit difficult for me to practice martial arts.”
Firstly, she did not have the potential!
Secondly, her joints were too inflexible for martial arts!
In other words, she can’t do it.