Chapter 40 Chapter 40 Finding the Jade Pendant
Governor's Mansion.
Liu Yi saw corpses all over the ground. His stiff face trembled violently in an instant. His green eyes were full of panic as he pointed at Li Cheng and was speechless.
Li Cheng walked slowly up to him, leaning slightly closer, his voice as gentle as a spring breeze: "Sir Liu, are you familiar with these people?" His tone seemed as if he was chatting with Liu Yi.
Liu Yi took two steps back, clenched his fists, and forced himself to calm down. He took a few slow breaths before pretending to be calm and asking, "Master Cui, what do you mean? Should I know these people?"
As he spoke, he frowned and said, "Lord Cui is just a small official of the sixth rank. Even if I am now a criminal, I am still a superior official of the third rank. It is definitely not your place to say anything."
Li Cheng smiled, but his expression was cold. He said quietly, "If I'm not mistaken, you are Yan Guang, right?"
The moment these words were spoken, everyone in the room was shocked. Besides them, officials from Jiangnan, both high and low, had also been invited to attend. Initially, the officials were bewildered, unsure of the censor's intentions. But now, they understood somewhat. The censor probably believed they were secretly colluding with the rebels, and was using this as a warning to scare them.
Wei Zhaosheng's face was filled with horror, and he almost tripped over the rose chair next to him. His voice stuttered, "Your Highness, Master Cui... How, how is this possible?"
He and Liu Yi were classmates, and although his behavior seemed a little strange, he had never considered it. After all, Liu Yi had been seriously ill and was emaciated, so a change in his temperament was highly likely.
How could a normal person become the crown prince of the previous dynasty?!
A hurricane blew up in Wei Zhaosheng's heart, making his hands and feet numb and his mind confused.
Isn't Prince Yin in the southwest? When did he come to Jiangnan, and how did Your Highness know?
A series of questions were stuck in his throat, but Wei Zhaosheng didn't dare to ask out loud.
Zhu Fang stood aside, initially puzzled, but now he understood: the Crown Prince was setting him up for a spectacle. It was a shame for Liu Yi, the foolish thief, that he hadn't managed to assassinate the Crown Prince and had gotten himself into trouble.
This donkey is violent and as stupid as a pig, destined to achieve nothing great. He probably received news of the defeat in the southwest and, in a moment of desperation, attempted to assassinate the crown prince. He didn't consider that the Azure Dragon Guards around the crown prince were vegetarians.
It was a good thing that he had no intention of getting involved. If that rotten mouth said anything nonsense, this bastard would not be able to keep him.
Liu Yi's expression was stiff, his thin frame trembling. His eyes rolled back, fixed on Li Cheng, scanning him up and down. After a long moment, his unwavering gaze met his, and as if drained of his energy, he slowly collapsed to the ground.
He stopped quibbling and asked weakly: "How did you know? I believe my whereabouts are secretive and I have never revealed my true identity in front of you."
In order to better adapt to the role of Liu Yi, he deliberately learned the other party's words and deeds, and even used the excuse of a serious illness to cover up some strange behavior.
Even Zhu Fang, Liu Yi's subordinate and colleague who had worked with him for many years, failed to see through his scheme. How did the Crown Prince know about it?
Li Cheng brushed the corner of his robe lightly and sat down in the armchair beside him. His movements were neither hurried nor slow, and his movements were graceful. Even though he was wearing a fake skin, he still gave people a sense of ease and elegance. He was indeed a crown prince raised in a wealthy family.
What a pity! Everything the other party enjoys now was snatched from Yan Guang. As the heir apparent of a country and the supreme ruler of the world, this should have been his position!
What a hatred! Whenever he thought of this, Yan Guang felt his eyes bloodshot, as if a pair of invisible hands were tightly grasping his neck, making it difficult for him to breathe, and his chest was churning with anger. He wanted to pick up a knife and kill people, to get rid of all these executioners.
Compared to his disheveled figure and frantic behavior, Li Cheng appeared remarkably calm. The Crown Prince looked at him with great interest, a faint smile on his face, and said with the air of a victor:
"His Highness Yan Guang likes Taoism. He became a monk many years ago and called himself Master Qingxu. The governor Liu Yi was born in a poor family, and his father was killed by so-called monks and Taoists when he was young. Therefore, not only does he not like Taoism, he hates these evil Taoists. Many years ago, he petitioned his father to demolish all the large and small temples in the country to return a harmonious and peaceful place to the people."
However, when Emperor Hui'an first ascended the throne, the country was unstable and the sound of drums and gongs could be heard frequently throughout the country. In order not to provoke a popular uprising, the emperor remained silent.
Li Cheng was very clear about all of this, so when he came to the governor's residence for a banquet and saw the Three Pure Ones enshrined in the hall, he vaguely felt that something was wrong.
Wei Zhaosheng had once whispered in his ear that Liu Yi was a bit strange, not what he remembered. This only deepened the Crown Prince's suspicions. However, despite his suspicions, he had never expected the other party to be the Crown Prince of the previous dynasty.
It was not until last night when the fifty secret guards attempted to sneak into his bedroom to assassinate him that he was truly sure that the other party was Yan Guang, not the so-called Liu Yi.
This explanation clearly failed to convince Yan Guang. His eyes, red and filled with intense hatred, sneered, "Prefect Liu fell seriously ill last year and finally emerged from the brink of death. It's normal for him to place his spiritual hopes in monks and Taoists. Why do you think I'm Yan Guang, based on these baseless speculations? Could it be that the crown prince of a country is so incompetent?"
Facing the other party's veiled questioning, Li Cheng remained calm and composed, "I am indeed incompetent. If the assassins you sent out last night hadn't revealed their true intentions, I might still be in the dark. After all, the only person in the country who most hopes that I will die in Jiangnan is you, Your Highness Yan Guang."
"The forces in the southwest were defeated by the imperial court in one fell swoop, disrupting your plan. In a hurry, you received a secret letter from a spy in Chang'an, knowing that I was currently in Jiangnan. So in order not to miss the opportunity, you carefully planned this assassination." Yan Guang's face turned paler and paler, and he barely managed to avoid slipping by leaning on the table and chair.
"Is what I said correct?" Hearing the other party mention the defeat in the southwest, Yan Guang felt as if he had been stepped on. He suddenly became furious: "You Li family are all bad people, rats, and beasts who eat dog shit! If it weren't for you, the whole world would still be mine! I am the master of destiny! You filthy people, sooner or later you will pay the price for your actions!"
This was an obsession he buried deep in his heart. He woke up in his dreams countless times at midnight, and he always thought that he was still the prince sitting high in the hall, surrounded by servants, and wearing a four-clawed dragon robe.
The golden threads of the dragon robe shone brightly in the sunlight. This was the taste of power, a source of endless longing and intoxication. No wonder everyone yearned for the supreme position.
But every time I woke up, I found myself lying on a simple and dim bed, with only a few confidants around me. The only thing that could empathize with me was probably the moonlight leaking in through the window.
He even had a malicious thought: if his father had died earlier and passed the throne to him, he would at least have experienced what it felt like to hold the throne. He wouldn't be running around like a stray dog. Therefore, only by killing the Li family father and son could the world truly return to his own hands.
The Li family deserves to die!
Li Cheng's cold sneer brought him back from his reverie. "I thought you'd made some progress after years of planning outside, but I didn't expect you to say such foolish things. You thought our Li family had taken your world, but you didn't realize it was you and your son who were gradually pushing it away."
"The world is in turmoil, with starving people everywhere and the people living in dire straits. And you and your son, one is busy living a life of luxury, while the other is busy seeking immortality and conscripting a large number of laborers to build a Taoist temple for you. The world has been rotten for a long time. Even if our Li family is gone, there are still other Wang families and Chen families. There are always people who can't stand such evil deeds and rise up in rebellion. In the final analysis, it is because of your incompetence that you handed over this great country to others."
Yan Guang had been the crown prince for many years and had been accustomed to a life of extravagance and luxury. It was not that he had not thought about the real reason for the demise of Liang State, but he had been paralyzing himself and instilling in himself the idea of being the master of destiny.
It seemed that only this way could he conceal the fact that his virtue was unworthy of his position. But now, the only fig leaf had been torn off, and he had touched upon the so-called truth, which he had already habitually regarded as a fallacy.
He flew into a rage, pointing at Li Cheng's nose and angrily cursing, "Who do you think you are? How dare you claim to be the crown prince? How can you be any better than me?"
Yan Guang suddenly burst into laughter, his eyes gleaming with bloodthirsty laughter. "Didn't you just say that this was a secret letter sent by my spy hidden in Chang'an? Since Your Highness is so intelligent and virtuous, even comparable to Yao and Shun, then you can imagine who sent this letter. Your Highness is omnipotent, so you can't even tell the difference between good and evil, right? If that's the case, how can you be worthy of being a king?"
Li Cheng's expression suddenly turned ugly.
Knowing that he had touched the other party's pain, Yan Guang became more and more proud: "Since I have fallen into your hands, you can forget about sitting safely on the throne of the crown prince!" He shouted angrily, "It's ridiculous to think that you will kill each other in the future and fight to the death for the throne of the crown prince. I am really looking forward to that day."
Li Cheng's fingers creaked and his body was shaking.
Wei Zhaosheng was completely bewildered as he listened, and seeing the prince's condition, he couldn't help but worry. Finally, he asked the question deep in his heart: "Your Highness, what is this traitor trying to do?"
What's with the idea of fratricide? The Emperor cherishes His Highness so much that he's expressed the desire to abdicate many times. His Highness, the Wise Prince, even more, respects and admires his only brother. The Crown Prince's position as heir apparent is as solid as a rock, so why would they fratricide? This old scoundrel must have been overly disturbed, his words unhinged and incoherent.
When the Crown Prince called himself "Gu," all the officials sensed something was amiss and knelt in kowtow. Among them was Zhu Fang, who had been watching silently as a bystander. Suddenly, upon hearing Yan Guang's words, panic flashed in his calm eyes.
Fortunately, he reacted very quickly, and the abnormal expression on his face was quickly suppressed. However, Li Cheng had been observing him consciously from beginning to end, and he took in all the strange things that had just flashed by.
His right hand caressed the sachet at his waist, his eyes dark and unfathomable. Yan Guang was already like a lost dog, with few people around him to rely on. Now, facing the Azure Dragon Guards, he would soon be on his knees and bound.
After his initial fury subsided, he became resigned and allowed the Azure Dragon Guard to tear off the mask on his face. The face behind the mask was old and aged, with prominent cheekbones and sagging skin, and he looked to be in his seventies.
Wei Zhaosheng and the others were shocked again, and they thought to themselves that it really took a strong heart to work with His Highness. He didn't know how many times he had been scared this morning.
I don't know how that eunuch Li Fu managed to survive. Suppressing his inner complaints, he bowed and flattered: "As expected, Your Highness, this guy is really Yan Guang himself."
The southwestern rebel army had long been vulnerable to the imperial court's iron hoof, and now Yan Guang himself had been captured. It seemed that His Highness had long been aware of Yan Guang's presence in Jiangnan and was planning to catch him in a trap.
Li Cheng saw what the other party was thinking at a glance, and said slowly: "I didn't know that Yan Guang was in Jiangnan in advance. It was only after you said that something was wrong with Governor Liu that I started thinking about it this way."
Despite this, Wei Zhaosheng didn't believe a word of it. If His Highness hadn't anticipated this, why would he have hidden his whereabouts and traveled all the way south? He must have sensed something was wrong. He's simply saying this because he's naturally modest and doesn't want to show off. The provincial governor had a look on his face that said, "I understand. I understand."
Compared to the Crown Prince's relaxed demeanor, Zhu Fang felt the exact opposite. He couldn't guess what His Highness meant by this move, or why he had asked him to come and observe. Did he sense something was up?
But besides him, all the officials from Jiangnan, both great and small, were invited. Seeing that the prince behaved as usual, Zhu Fang could only comfort himself, thinking that perhaps the prince just wanted them to witness it with their own eyes, to make an example of him.
After resolving the Yan Guang incident, the Crown Prince did not truly relax, his aura of coldness even stronger than before. The officials kowtowed in unison, "Your Highness, your humble servants pay their respects."
When Yan Guang spoke, all the Jiangnan officials present were shocked. Some, who had recently been causing trouble for His Highness, were terrified, fearing that the Crown Prince would punish them. Their legs trembled with fear, and in the blink of an eye, their trouser legs were soaked.
Li Cheng asked the official to stand up. Ever since he planned to come to the governor's mansion to confront Yan Guang, he had no intention of hiding the truth any longer.
Judge Cui's previous identity had caused him many inconveniences, but now there was no point in hiding it any longer. It was time to reveal his true identity.
He entered the inner room and asked someone to remove the mask on his face. This was the territory of Governor Liu, and now he had to get rid of these evil spirits. He did not hesitate at all and walked straight into the hall.
The Qinglong Guard who was skilled in disguise removed the mask from his face. Li Rong washed his face with water and only then realized that he had walked into Yan Guang's study.
Yan Guang was a devoted Taoist, as the layout of his study revealed. In the center of the floor, a Tai Chi Bagua diagram, several feet wide, was carved. The books on the shelves were mostly related to this. On the wall hung swords and banners, and on the table stood a wooden fish and a yinpan, all neatly arranged.
Li Cheng was not interested in all this and was about to step out when his peripheral vision suddenly caught sight of a brocade box placed on the Duobao Pavilion. The box was engraved with Qilin and dragon patterns on the outside and was carved from golden nanmu wood.
Golden nanmu wood is a symbol of imperial dignity. Yan Guang was the crown prince of the previous dynasty, so it was not surprising that he had such an item. While this brocade box was luxurious, Li Cheng, as the crown prince, had seen many more precious items.
Even he didn't know why he was so attracted by the box. By the time he realized what was happening, the box was already in his hands.
He stroked the box, carefully studying the patterns on it, and then opened it after a moment. Inside was a plain-looking object wrapped in a white silk handkerchief. Li Cheng didn't know why he had opened the box for no apparent reason. He didn't see anything of value and was about to close the lid and leave.
The moment the lid was closed, my finger accidentally touched the brocade handkerchief inside, and my index finger was slightly curled up, revealing the smooth white color wrapped in the brocade handkerchief.
Li Cheng's eyes suddenly widened, as if in disbelief, and he took out the thing and examined it again and again.
Xia Chang, who had been waiting by the side, noticed that His Highness was behaving strangely. He stared at the jade pendant in his hand without saying a word, his breathing unusually rapid. He couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, have you discovered anything?"
Li Cheng didn't answer, but turned the jade pendant over and over again, feeling both surprised and delighted. But after the surprise wore off, his expression quickly turned serious.
Although he had never worn the exquisite jade pendant, he had worn it around his waist for so many years that he knew the patterns on it clearly. Therefore, when he saw the jade in the brocade box, he felt a sense of déjà vu.
If I'm not mistaken, this jade pendant is a pair with the one in his hand, with the same color and the same touch. The only difference is that his piece is yang, and this one is yin.
Could it be that the little girl had fallen into Yan Guang's hands? Otherwise, how could one explain this scene? Taoism emphasizes "the immortal path values life and offers infinite salvation," cherishing all life in the world.
But Yan Guang was a man of tyrannical and capricious character. In his early years, he had a reputation for loving his people like his own children. But as he grew older, he became more and more like his father, the Li Emperor, a tyrannical and merciless man with a wolfish heart. If Qin Niang fell into his hands, what would her life be?
Li Cheng's mind suddenly flashed back to rumors about Yan Guang from his early years. It was said that he enjoyed refining elixirs of immortality, often using the blood of young boys and girls as a key ingredient in his elixirs.
If that were the case, Li Cheng didn't dare to think about it. He leaned his hands against the shelf to steady himself. He ordered Xia Chang sternly, "Bring that Yan Guang here. I want to interrogate him alone!"
The Crown Prince had just ordered Yan Guang to be taken away, and now, after seeing something, he suddenly said he wanted to interrogate Yan Guang. Xia Chang didn't understand why, and didn't dare to ask. He respectfully clasped his fists and withdrew.
The Crown Prince seemed to have encountered some kind of irritation, and he was so exhausted that he could hardly stand. Thinking of the fact that His Highness had been ill last night and still hadn't recovered, and that he couldn't wait to come to the Governor's Mansion in person today, Xia Chang couldn't help but feel a strong sense of worry.
When he was leaving the palace, he saw the Censor outside. He couldn't help but go over and said, "Your Highness is not feeling well now. Please go in and take a look."
Wei Zhaosheng was several generations older than the Crown Prince, and his biggest worry during his trip to Jiangnan was that His Highness would have health problems. Upon hearing Xia Chang's words, he was so frightened that he almost blurted out to call a doctor.
When he met the other person's eyes that didn't want to speak out, he finally had no choice but to swallow the words stuck in his throat. Without waiting a moment, he raised his foot and headed towards the inner hall.
The Crown Prince's men surrounded the entire Governor's residence several times, and the Azure Dragon Guards searched every corner of the residence. Because Xia Chang and the others had previously accompanied the Crown Prince on a visit to the Governor's residence, they knew where the hidden dangers lay. They focused their search on the secluded attic, and indeed, discovered the secret.
Before Yan Guang arrived, a Qinglong Guard reported the matter to the Crown Prince. Li Cheng's expression hadn't recovered yet, but his eyes froze as he heard it, as if he was expecting something. His voice trembled faintly, "Are you saying there's a secret passage under the attic, with dozens of women hiding inside?"
The subordinate nodded, "Indeed. The women had their hands bound, their faces covered with black cloth, and their bodies naked, covered in blood from beatings. It seemed as if their voices had been poisoned and mute; none of them could speak." Because the scene was so bloody, they rescued the women and then had someone buy them clothes.
Wei Zhaosheng listened with alarm, for he had heard many rumors. Prince Yanguang was violent and treacherous, and he not only liked to use the blood of young boys and girls in his medicine, but also women's menstrual blood to refine his elixir of immortality.
Women had to be chosen who were good-looking and had never conceived children. Those imprisoned in the secret passage were most likely like this.
The prince's face became increasingly ugly, and he looked anxious: "Take me over there, I want to check it out myself!" After he finished speaking, without waiting for anyone to react, the corner of his turquoise robe flashed by.
Along the way, his emotions were like a roller coaster: shock, joy, worry, and anger. Yan Guang had committed such a heinous act that it would not be too much to tear him into pieces.
Is it her? How could she have fallen into such a state at the hands of Yan Guang? The smiling little girl of the Changsun Mansion must have suffered greatly at the hands of a wicked man like Yan Guang.
He had searched for her for years, only to find she was in Yan Guang's hands. The attendant said she had been poisoned, her voice mute, and her body covered in blood. He had actually let her suffer so much.
Thinking of this, Li Cheng's heart was filled with guilt, as if a fire was burning in his chest, and the pain was so severe that he could hardly breathe. Wei Zhaosheng saw the prince's rapid movements, the corners of his eyes were red, and his face was as pale as paper. He was immediately shocked and frightened. He hurriedly urged him to find a doctor to take his pulse.
The prince, however, acted as if he hadn't heard anything and hurried on. He only wanted to find Qin Niang and confirm whether she was truly in Yan Guang's hands.
Hopefully, it's not too late.
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The author has something to say: I don't know if there are any readers now, if not I want to say sorry. I'm really sorry that it took so long to update [explosive crying][explosive crying]
I've been busy with final exams and the CET-6 recently, so I haven't had much time to update. I'm really sorry [burst into tears]. To be honest, this is the third time I've taken the CET-6 since my freshman year. [melted][melted] I hope I can pass this time [angry][angry] Otherwise I'll really go crazy [burst into tears]
Bow again~
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