Chapter 89: It’s Related to Mission Three
The soldiers here were undoubtedly… the Regent King’s nemesis.
Khan Ashina Shali’s troops.
Turks.
They were Turks disguised as Great Wei guards. Stationed at the current Hanyuan Hall, Yuan Xizai, the Governor of Luoyang, in order to survive, was repeating his old tricksâcurrying favor with the Turkic Khan. He was a traitor collaborating with the enemy.
“Oru adakomi ni wa…”
“Who goes there? Come out!”
Two voices rang out simultaneously from the guards armed with weapons patrolling outside the Hanyuan Hall.
Wei Wanlan finally understood why he kept hearing vague, unintelligible words from the pursuers…
âBecause they weren’t native sons of Great Wei at all.
They were spies. They had infiltrated Great Wei.
This mission even involved Turks!
It was hard to imagine a little emperor like him falling into the hands of the Turks. Wuwu, that would be like throwing a meat bun to a dogâhe’d be done for!
He might even be held hostage, forcing Great Wei to cede territory and pay reparations…
If the big bad guy refused to pay the ransom, he would go from being a hostage to being a “human pig” (a gruesome form of torture involving limb amputation) QAQ.
Chopped into a bloody stick.
He absolutely, positively, definitely could not be caught by the Turks!
Terrified, Wei Wanlan lost his composure and tried to drag Fu Jun away. But the area outside Hanyuan Hall was so open; he had anticipated thisârunning into the open would make them living targets.
What should he do?
Wuwuwu! The Turkic soldiers were coming!! He was going to be a hostage!!!
“Yakabu nagamu!”
Eh?
That phrase, completely unlike the official language of Great Wei, suddenly burst from Fu Jun’s mouth beside Wei Wanlan. And when Fu Jun spoke it, his voice lacked its usual magnetic resonance. Who knew how he curled his tongue like that? His pronunciation was incredibly authentic.
Wei Wanlan stared blankly at the scene.
However, the Turkic soldiers around the corner reacted immediately. They stopped in their tracks, exchanging a few sentences in Turkic with the person around the corner. Seeming very sure that they were on the same side, they didn’t come out to check.
The Turkic soldiers actually retreated.
Wei Wanlan let out a long sigh of relief.
The two eunuchs sitting at the base of the wall were dumbfounded. They had never seen such a bizarre sight: a man dressed as a black-clad swordsman, with a cold expression, opening his mouth to speak fluent Turkic, mimicking a rough Turk perfectly.
Truly.
If Wei Wanlan didn’t trust that Fu Jun was a good person, he might have taken him for a traitor collaborating with the enemy.
Wei Wanlan’s ears twitched. It took him a long while before he dared to tug gently on Fu Jun’s clothes and whisper, “How do you know the Turkic language?”
“I once traveled in the borderlands,” Fu Jun replied, his expression unchanged.
A certain Regent King thought to himself, I really can’t speak any other languages. But Turkic? That I can speak fluently. After all, I grew up hearing it. He had been dragged to the border by his father since he was a child.
Before a fight, both sides would send people to hurl insults, and the insults had to be understood by the other side. So, even though the Regent King himself was very civilized, his mental vocabulary of Turkic was rich, mostly consisting of greetings to the other person’s ancestors.
But Wei Wanlan found it fascinating.
So the hero became a treasure once again. What an amazing hero!
Even more amazing than speaking foreign languages.
Wei Wanlan’s admiration and appreciation were evident on his face. Unable to praise him loudly, he could only nod repeatedly at Fu Jun, his eyes crinkling with a smile.
In Fu Jun’s eyes, it was a cute, innocent clumsiness. Even subtle little movements could smooth Fu Jun’s brow; the hero enjoyed it immensely.
However, now was not the time to use detoxification as an excuse to ask for a kiss from his beloved.
The hero had another brilliant plan to attract the little fool’s attention.
Fu Jun spoke again in Turkic, provoking a Turkic guard around the corner. This time, he actively lured him:
“Modeng, hemen bulaya jilin!”
Completely unaware of what Fu Jun intended to do, Wei Wanlan watched with trepidation.
Then he heard the footsteps of a Turkic soldier moving around the corner. As soon as the lured Turkic guard rounded the corner, Fu Jun stepped forward, locked his throat, and knocked him unconscious.
The Turkic soldier collapsed limply.
Fu Jun disarmed the soldier of his bow and arrows, then efficiently and disdainfully stripped him of his standard Great Wei military uniform. He took off the fake Wei soldier’s outer robe, then stood up, weighing the clothes in his hand.
At this point, Wei Wanlan suddenly understood, even feeling eager to try: “Are we going to disguise ourselves as soldiers to sneak into the Hanyuan Hall?”
As a cosplayer, Wei Wanlan wasn’t afraid. If possible, he could even give Fu Jun a makeover, doing some simple modifications to his face.
However, what Fu Jun did was not what Wei Wanlan expected. Wei Wanlan couldn’t have guessed it at all.
Because next, Fu Jun handed a corner of the soldier’s clothes to Wei Wanlan, leaning in close to his ear to whisper instructions, his warm breath tickling Wei Wanlan’s ear.
Fu Jun said, “Hold these clothes up. Don’t use too much force.”
Wei Wanlan naturally didn’t understand the purpose.
But Fu Jun had shocked him too many times, making Wei Wanlan anticipate the result of this action without questioning its purpose. Wei Wanlan cooperated, holding the Wei military uniform high.
Then he saw Fu Jun grip the heavy bow he had just seized.
He drew the string, gripping the handle tightly.
The sound of the bowstring tightening slowly emerged in the night, creaking and groaningâa sound that would set one’s teeth on edge if heard up close.
Wei Wanlan held his breath.
His eyes were filled with the image of Fu Jun drawing the bow.
Underneath Fu Jun’s noble and imposing manor lord robes, he could see the curves of his arms. He bit his lip, finding himself somewhat fond of this body, full of vigorous tension from years of martial arts practice.
Carrying five little cubs…
QAQ!!!
His small face flushed in the night wind.
The bowstring twanged.
The feathered arrow pierced through the Wei military uniform, the force carrying the clothes, transforming them into a black shadow streaking past the Hanyuan Hall!
Fu Jun shouted in Turkic: “Someone is trying to break into the hall!”
His Turkic was authentic, his tone urgent, leaving no room for doubt. Consequently, the entire circle of fake Wei troops guarding the Hanyuan Hall mobilized, raising their swords and rushing toward the disturbance…
This was their chance to enter the hall!
Fu Jun led Wei Wanlan up the Dragon Tail Path amidst the chaos.
Entering through the back door, they ran headlong into a Turkic soldier rushing out. Fu Jun drew his sword without a word and cut him down, then hid the body in the shadows of the night.
Wei Wanlan panted as he followed Fu Jun, never having seen such a method of entry. They arrived at the main hall door of the Luoyang Imperial Villa.
This building was identical to the one in Chang’an. As long as they passed through it, the Imperial Bridge was just ahead, and the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Manor who were there to receive them were also ahead.
Whether to take temporary shelter, lead the martial arts heroes in continued combat, or report Yuan Xizai’s treason to the Regent King, the situation now had the possibility of moving forward.
The main hall doors were tightly shut.
There were no lights inside.
These were wooden doors, not particularly sturdy. Far less tough than the stone door that guarded Yuan Mingyue’s jade crown.
So even Wei Wanlan didn’t consider breaking through this door a major feat; even if he had a weapon in his hand, he could easily open the doors of the Hanyuan Hall.
Fu Jun raised his hand and the sword fell.
The wooden doors swung wide open, revealing the interior furnishings shrouded in darkness. Wei Wanlan breathed a slight sigh of relief. He could already imagine, even see, the Imperial Way not far away.
But in the darkness.
On the dragon throne of the Hanyuan Hall.
If they hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, no one could have predicted that someone in the hall was staring despairingly into the night. His pleading voice echoed in the empty, silent hall:
“Save… me.”
The dragon throne had been moved.
There was a crack emitting light at the base of the dragon throne.
Seeing a part revealed the whole. Beneath the moved throne was the entirely hollowed-out foundation of the Hanyuan Hall. The interior of the Dragon Tail Path that elevated the hall was hollow; inside was a massive warehouse!
It was Yuan Xizai’s treasury.
The place where the Luoyang Imperial Villa’s money was hidden.
The light seeping from the crack should have revealed indescribable splendor and wealth.
But now, only light seeped out from underground.
There were some scattered pieces of silver on the floor of the hall, along with shattered jade, broken strings of pearls… the scene looked as if it had been looted by thieves.
Wei Wanlan raised his gaze from the base of the dragon throne. Then he was shocked by Yuan Xizai, who was pinned to the dragon throne by a long blade.
He saw half of the bloodstained blade protruding through Yuan Xizai’s body.
Yuan Xizai’s lips moved.
A sliver of moonlight penetrated through the window, illuminating Yuan Xizai’s mouth, which was constantly vomiting fresh blood. Blood flowed from the wound and his mouth; Yuan Xizai couldn’t withstand the pain at all.
His face was ashen, but his lifelong habit of unwillingness to give up made him shamelessly beg Wei Wanlan:
“Your Majesty, save this humble subject, I beg you…”
“This subject was attacked by Turks. I swore to protect the property of the Luoyang Imperial Villa from being plundered by the enemy state. This subject is loyal to Great Wei, this subjectâ”
“Cough, cough cough cough.”
Bloody foam sprayed from the corrupt official’s lips.
A stream of blood flowed along the floor tiles to Wei Wanlan’s feet.
The smell of blood made Wei Wanlan retch.
What he feared most in political intrigue novels were these scenes of killing, even if the person dying was a villain he hated, the Yuan Xizai who had inverted right and wrong and fawned his way to power.
But he just couldn’t get over it.
Wei Wanlan closed his deer-like eyes.
Judging Yuan Xizai was the King of Hell’s job. Even though Wei Wanlan had read Yuan Mingyue’s memories, he didn’t intend to recount the truth he had learned to the other party because it was meaningless. Yuan Xizai was doomed to die.
Fu Jun also didn’t want to look at this person destined for death.
Before coming to Luoyang, Fu Jun had learned of Yuan Xizai’s evil deeds from the real Master of the Heavenly Sword Manor. Being able to smoothly assume the identity of the Heavenly Sword Manor Master wasn’t just because the real Fu Jun was pressured by power and old friendship, but also because Yuan Xizai deserved to die.
Fu Jun lowered his brow, pulling Wei Wanlan slightly aside so he wouldn’t see the blood.
“While we were gone, the Turks thought this place would eventually be exposed. They killed Yuan Xizai and took the treasures out of the forbidden area,” Fu Jun pursed his lips.
Wei Wanlan frowned deeply. This expression was rare on his face. Wei Wanlan was always innocent and obedient; such sharpness, with light trembling in his pupils, was extremely uncommon.
Wei Wanlan bit his lip: “But this is Great Wei. Yuan Xizai hadn’t yet faced legal judgment. Yet he was killed by Turks.”
Ideally, Wei Wanlan had effectively completed the task of eliminating the corrupt official; he must have advanced the main storyline.
But at this moment, Wei Wanlan also felt a sense of crisis like a thorn in his back. He gritted his teeth. Because behind Mission Two… he faintly saw the long and arduous road of Mission Three.
To the northwest lay such a covetous enemy state, ready at any moment to infiltrate Great Wei, to stab Great Wei in the back, rendering the mountains and rivers of Great Wei restless.
“Son of Heaven!!!”
Yuan Xizai couldn’t accept his end. His face twisted in the moonlight, emitting a loud rattling sound from his throat as he mustered his last breath toward Wei Wanlan:
“If you pull out the blade from my body, I will serve you like a beast of burden, recite poems and write lyrics, sing all of Chang’an’s songs, only for you alone!!!”
“The wealth and romance of this world are indescribable. Why can’t I be a superior man? Why must my life and death be dictated by others?”
“Yuan Mingyue, the Grand Princess, the Regent King, the Turks…”
“I don’t want to die.”
Yuan Xizai’s voice viciously cursed every figure who had ever pressed down on his head.
Until his breath gradually weakened.
Wei Wanlan suddenly opened his eyes and took a few steps closer, ignoring his rambling, staring intently at this sycophant.
Yuan Xizai deserved to die. He was kind-hearted and could understand why he did evil, but he didn’t pity such a person.
Wei Wanlan had one more thing he wanted to confirm with this person before he died:
“Tell Us, was the bribe of ten thousand gold to the Regent King three years ago timed to coincide with the sudden death of the late emperor, when the national treasury was stretched thin and the Turks invaded by night? Answer, and We may leave your corpse intact.”
Feeling the inexplicable pressure of the young Son of Heaven.
Even on the verge of death, Yuan Xizai could clearly realize that if he answered the next sentence wrong, this seemingly soft and gentle little emperor, along with the martial artist standing beside him, could make his final moments a hundred times more painful.
After all, he was a little emperor who dared to run out of the palace to thoroughly investigate him…
Great Wei’s Son of Heaven, Wei Wanlan.
Yuan Xizai lowered his head weakly:
“Yes.”
That ten thousand gold was for the Regent King’s first battle after taking office.
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