Chapter 61 Escape

Sima Jun was safe and sound, and Sun Wei felt that she could sleep peacefully.

A'ru had already gone to rest. Sun Wei returned to the room and closed the door. Suddenly, she felt the room was chilly.

Looking out, he saw the back window wide open. Sun Wei, alert, was about to leave the room when he felt a chill on his neck and someone whispered, "Don't make a sound."

Sun Wei recognized the man's voice and remained motionless.

"What is General Cheng doing?"

Cheng Yu said, "I have no intention of hurting the princess. I just have a few questions to ask. I'll leave after I've asked them."

"I understand. General Cheng, please put the knife away first."

Cheng Yu hesitated for a moment and retracted the dagger.

Sun Wei turned around and saw that his eyes were uncertain, like a frightened bird. He no longer had the dignity of the previous governor.

"What does General Cheng want to ask?"

Cheng Yu's face didn't look good, and his brows were furrowed.

"I have gone to the camp with the Major General to suppress it. Will the prince let me go?" he asked.

This question was asked with such helplessness that Sun Wei knew he had nowhere else to turn.

"General Cheng was worried about this, so he escaped again?"

Cheng Yu did not respond, but only said: "Please answer, Princess."

Sun Wei asked, "Then General, you must tell me everything. How much of a role did you play in the Northern Army rebellion?"

Cheng Yu's eyes were heavy, but he seemed to have finally made up his mind. After a moment, he said, "Wang Pushe never showed up. It was Wang Zhi who found me. He promised me the position of Governor of the Northern Prefecture. I thought it was a fantasy at first and didn't accept it. Then one time, I was drinking with Cui Pan. I got drunk and accidentally mentioned this matter. Cui Pan and I have always been good friends. I was not afraid of my drunken slip of the tongue, but Cui Pan has been concerned since then. He has repeatedly tried to persuade me, even saying that he would handle everything and all I had to do was contact Wang Zhi."

Sun Wei asked, "So you're tempted?"

"I can't help but be tempted. The young general knows nothing, so what great things can I accomplish by following him? The Northern Palace is a place where the weak are preyed upon by the strong. With the death of Marquis Changyang, there are many people with ulterior motives. Even if I don't take action today, others will kill me one day."

"So, what happened later was a conspiracy between the general and Cui Pan?"

Cheng Yu replied, "Initially, the two of us recruited a number of generals. Cui Pan was more eloquent than I, and he was responsible for winning their support. I saw that Cui Pan handled matters reliably, so I later brought him along when I met with Wang Zhi. Gradually, Cui Pan and Wang Zhi became close friends, and sometimes, Cui Pan would bypass me and go to Wang Zhi on his own. It just so happened that the Crown Prince was here in person, and I had many trivial matters to attend to. The subsequent matters were actually handled by Cui Pan."

Sun Wei said helplessly, "If such a big thing is left to the hands of others, General, aren't you worried that Cui Pan will replace you after the success?"

Cheng Yu was stunned. "Wang Zhi has already promised me the position of Governor of the Northern Prefecture. If he goes back on his word, I will not let him go. We will both suffer losses and no one will benefit."

Sun Wei said coldly, "Wang Zhi certainly can't do it, but what about Cui Pan? After the Northern Army mutiny, the remaining generals were all from Cui Pan's faction, so they were naturally closer to him. And what did the general get? Just a title. It only takes another mutiny, and the general will lose everything."

Sun Wei did not deceive Cheng Yu.

In his previous life, he had indeed obtained the position of Governor of the Northern Prefecture, but the new Northern Prefecture was in turmoil, and he died in a mutiny just three months later. After his death, Cui Pan won the favor of Wang Zhi and obtained the position of Governor of the Northern Prefecture.

But Cui Pan was no pushover. He was ambitious and not someone to be manipulated. As for how he later broke free from Wang's control and became a powerful official wielding considerable power, that's another story.

In short, Cheng Yu was no match for Cui Pan.

Cheng Yu was shocked.

"Cui Pan and I have a very close friendship and will not betray me."

Sun Wei sneered, "At this point, General, do you still believe in friendship? How did the Xie family treat you, and how did you treat the young general?"

"That's different!" Cheng Yu blushed. "The Northern Government controls the military of the entire country. How can the position of commander-in-chief be controlled by a mediocre person?"

"That's easier to say." Sun smiled. "How do you know, General, that in Cui Pan's eyes, you're not a mediocre person?"

Cheng Yu was so angry that his face turned pale and he put his hand on the knife.

Sun Wei was not afraid: "I advise the general to calm down. If you disturb the palace guards, the general will die."

Cheng Yu glared at Sun Wei, but could do nothing.

Sun Wei said, "General, you just asked me if the Crown Prince would let you go. So, General, please listen carefully. Although Cui Pan was responsible for many of these things, you agreed to them. If you had insisted on rejecting Wang Zhi, none of the subsequent events would have occurred. If you want to atone for your mistakes today, I'm afraid you can't. Unless, as I said, you still have a chance of survival."

——

On July 19, the 12th year of Jianyang, the generals of the Northern Palace colluded with each other and attempted to assassinate the prince, but failed.

The Crown Prince was furious and ordered the Minister of Justice Zhang Su to conduct a thorough investigation of the Northern Palace, to find out the mastermind behind the incident and to find out the whole story within seven days.

Soon after, Zhang Su brought news that the most critical figures in the case were Cheng Yu, the acting governor of the Northern Palace, and Cui Pan, the left assistant general who led the rebels to besiege the palace, both of whom were missing.

The Crown Prince lamented, "The dignified Northern Palace is now without a general! Starting today, the post of Northern Palace Governor will be performed by the Eastern Palace. Do you have any objections, my dear ministers?"

No one spoke in the hall.

Everyone knew that the prince had asked this question not to them but to Wang Han. Now, they were just waiting for Wang Han to speak.

Wang Hao looked at his nose and said slowly, "This proposal is very sound. The Crown Prince is so capable and hardworking, which is admirable."

The Crown Prince said, "Since all the ministers have no objection, issue the order immediately to block the waterway and land routes and arrest Cheng Yu and Cui Pan. We will discuss further matters after we have thoroughly investigated this mutiny."

On the way back to the inn, Wang Zhi glanced at Wang Han who was resting with his eyes closed, and dared not breathe.

"Will it be traced back to you?" Wang Han suddenly asked after a moment.

"No," Wang Zhi said hurriedly, "Don't worry, father. The only people who have seen me are Cheng Yu, Cui Pan, and Jiao Wei. The rest of the people were lobbied by Cheng Yu and Cui Pan. Although they know about what happened today, they don't know the intention, so naturally they can't trace it back to me."

Wang Han opened his eyes slightly. "Cheng Yu and Cui Pan are missing, Jiao Wei is in jail, and you're saying they can't trace it back to you?"

Wang Zhi smiled apologetically and said, "Cheng Yu and Cui Pan must have fled because they feared their crimes. Jingkou has well-developed waterways, so there's no reason they couldn't escape. As for Jiao Wei, he's loyal and won't tell anyone."

Wang Han suddenly raised his hand and slapped him in the face.

"You're more likely to cause trouble than to accomplish anything! You dare to guarantee something that has no solution? I think you're tired of living!"

Wang Zhi looked at Wang Han with grievance.

"Why is father so angry? These people have no foundation in the court, their influence is weak. Even if they confess everything, what will happen? With the Crown Prince's ability, what can he do to us?"

Wang Han took a deep breath and suppressed his anger.

"You don't understand," he whispered. "That Jiao Wei, have someone try to get rid of him. Cui Pan, have someone go find him! As for Cheng Yu, didn't you say he went home?"

Wang Zhi covered his face and nodded, "That was true before, but now, he's not home. I heard from the investigators that he returned home this morning and then left again. At noon, he sent a message home saying he was going on a long trip, and there has been no news since then."

Wang Hao's eyes flashed coldly: "Then who else is in his family?"

"And my 70-year-old mother, wife, and children."

Wang Han said coldly, "Go to Cheng's house."