Chapter 160 You Should Call Me Shang Yin
Shang Yin appeared outside the courtyard where Zhao Xun lived. The servants went to announce his arrival, but it was not Zhao Xun who came out, but his second wife, Li Shi.
“Master is busy today and has no time to see you,” Madam Li said in an unfriendly tone.
Since the Empress Dowager returned home, Lady Li had always treated Shang Yin as nothing, but now that her son had been punished by the family because of Shang Yin, all she felt for Shang Yin was disgust and hostility.
Shang Yin did not take Li's attitude to heart, and only said: "Whether Father is available or not is probably not up to you, Madam. The Dowager Princess wants to see him."
“You…” Madam Li glared angrily at Shang Yin, “Do you think that by using these petty tricks to harm my son, the master will even give you a second glance?”
When Li saw Shang Yin looking at her, she assumed that his secret had been exposed, and she sneered: "Master said long ago that the thing he regretted most in his life was obeying his father's orders to marry your mother, a woman of low birth. If it weren't for you two dragging him down, he wouldn't be in this situation today."
This statement is absurd and laughable, but some people will use such an excuse to justify their incompetence.
Shang Yin did not argue. He stared at Madam Li for a while, making her feel cold inside, before he looked away and said calmly, "Please ask Madam to bring my father out. Do not delay the Empress Dowager's important business."
His reaction discouraged Li Shi. Since the other party was using the title of the Dowager Consort, she dared not delay important matters and went back to call Zhao Xun.
When Zhao Xun came out, his expression was not good: "You said the Empress Dowager wanted to see me, what is it about?"
"The Dowager Consort wanted to go out of the city for a stroll and didn't want to disturb others, so she asked Father to lead the way."
Zhao Xun's eyes lit up upon hearing this. Although he was dissatisfied with many of his mother's actions, he knew even more clearly that his current good life was entirely due to his mother.
Being close to the Dowager Consort would only benefit him.
"Wait a moment, I'll go pack up right away."
Shang Yin said slowly from the side, "The Dowager does not want too many people to disturb her this time. She just wants the family to relax. Father, please do not bring too many people. Just bring two or three servants."
"A family?" This reminded Zhao Xun. He quickly changed his mind and asked Shang Yin, "If we don't bring anyone else, then bringing Zeqian shouldn't be a problem, right?"
Zhao Xun's family never included this son, whom he no longer cared about.
The only son he acknowledged was Zhao Zeqian, born to Li.
"I'm afraid that won't work; the Dowager Princess has not agreed."
The more he refused, the more Zhao Xun felt that Shang Yin had ill intentions, and the more determined he became to take Zhao Zeqian with him.
"You don't need to worry about this matter; I will speak to the Dowager Princess myself."
Shang Yin did not argue with him anymore. He coldly watched as Zhao Xun gave Li a meaningful look, and Li hurriedly left after understanding.
Lady Li knew what was important. Being able to spend time with the Dowager Consort in private was a rare opportunity to cultivate their relationship, so she naturally wanted to seize it.
Fortunately, Zhao Zeqian's injuries were not serious, and he was able to get out of bed after taking the medicine.
Before long, Li returned with Zhao Zeqian. Shang Yin didn't say anything, only told Zhao Xun to get ready and wait at the side gate before going back to report.
Zhao Xun and his son prepared two carriages and brought four servants, while the Dowager Consort only brought one maid.
When the Empress Dowager saw Zhao Zeqian waiting to the side, she only glared at Zhao Xun and didn't say anything more.
Seeing that the Dowager Consort did not object to Zhao Zeqian coming along, Zhao Xun smiled slightly and scolded Zhao Zeqian, who was standing to the side: "Get in the carriage quickly, and be smart later. Don't make your great-aunt unhappy, or I'll break your legs."
"I understand, Father." Zhao Zeqian knew the importance of the matter and quickly nodded.
After the group boarded the carriages, the servants drove the two carriages away from the Zhao residence.
About an hour after they left, Zhao Qi's steward suddenly came to the Empress Dowager's courtyard and said that the old master wanted to talk to the Empress Dowager.
The maid who remained at the mansion reluctantly informed the other party that the Dowager Consort had gone out for a stroll. The steward had no choice but to tell Zhao Qi the truth.
Upon hearing the butler's reply, Zhao Qi's aged face showed little emotion. He simply said quietly, "My daughter has always been shrewd and doesn't believe anyone. She even guards against her own father."
Knowing that the old master was sad, the steward comforted him, saying, "Perhaps the Dowager Princess doesn't want this matter to involve the old master."
Given the commotion last night, how could Zhao Qi not have ordered an investigation?
Thanks to the Zhao family's network of connections, even though the Mingjing Division had blocked the news, he quickly learned that the Mingjing Division guards had arrested a fourth-level expert last night, and that the person had been arrested in Changping Ward.
After discovering the whereabouts of the incense burner, the Dowager Consort said she would handle the matter herself. Zhao Qi, knowing his daughter's methods, did not interfere.
All he knew was that the incense burner should be in Changpingfang now.
Connecting these points, he naturally thought that the sudden arrest of Si Jing might be related to his daughter.
I was planning to call her over to ask her something, but she actually left the city.
Zhao Qi shook his head after hearing the steward's words: "She's not afraid of implicating me, she's afraid I'll take the opportunity to control her. This child, she's used to living a life of high status, and she wants to suppress everyone she meets, not even her own father, I.
The butler asked with a slight hesitation, "The Dowager Consort wouldn't want to return to the Northern Wilderness, would she?"
“No.” Zhao Qi said with certainty, “She probably thought of a way to contact the Northern Wilderness, but didn’t want me to know in advance.”
"Should we send some people to protect the Dowager? I heard that she only sent Young Master Xun with a few servants and Zhao Yin on this trip."
The Zhao family also supported several cultivators with decent cultivation levels, though of course, they were not as good as the people around the Empress Dowager.
“Zhao Yin…” Zhao Qi murmured the name, and after a long while said, “No need. Zhao Yin is devoted to the Dowager Consort. With him here, nothing serious will happen.”
The capital is not the northern wilderness; the three realms are enough to handle most things.
The steward nodded, then asked with some concern, "If the Mingjing Division has really found out something, what should we do? I've heard that Bai Xiuming, who is in charge of the Mingjing Division, is not someone to be trifled with."
Zhao Qi said calmly, "It's not enough for His Majesty to allow him to accuse the Zhao family based solely on an incense burner and an unidentified person from the Fourth Realm. He won't let him act recklessly."
Seeing his master so calm, the butler was somewhat relieved.
Looking at the gloomy sky outside, Zhao Qi said, "After the Dowager Consort returns, please ask her to come over."
"yes."
The Zhao family's carriage swayed and rattled out of the city. Since the Dowager Consort only said she wanted to relax and didn't have a specific destination, the servants didn't dare to make decisions on their own. So they followed Shang Yin's instructions and continued along the dirt road.
The carriage had traveled a long distance and was quite far from the capital.
At this point, some greenery could already be seen in the mountains, and a village could be seen further away.
On the hillside opposite Zhuangzi, there is a dilapidated little temple.
After Shang Yin saw the small temple, he ordered his servants to drive the carriage to the temple. The servants were puzzled, but dared not object.
Feeling the carriage jolting, the Empress Dowager asked, and Shang Yin replied truthfully, "Your Majesty, there is a temple halfway up the mountain. I have seen it from afar, and it should be an abandoned temple. Perhaps it can be used."
The Dowager frowned slightly, clearly not satisfied with the location Shang Yin had chosen. However, they had left in a hurry today and had not selected a location in advance. They could not use a farmhouse, otherwise the blood sacrifice might be discovered later, which would be even more troublesome.
In this light, the dilapidated temple that Shang Yin chose was quite convenient.
"Let's do as you say," the Dowager finally agreed.
Just as the Zhao family's carriage was heading up the hillside, Achan and Chen Hui were standing in the village. They spotted the two rather conspicuous carriages from afar.
"What are these people doing at that dilapidated temple?" Chen Hui asked curiously.
Achan smiled and replied, "Maybe he went to do something he felt guilty about."
Chen Hui seemed to be deep in thought.
The two carriages arrived at the dilapidated temple with some difficulty, but fortunately there was an open space in front of and behind the temple where they could barely park.
Shang Yin had his servants drive the carriage to the dilapidated temple before helping the Empress Dowager off the carriage.
After Zhao Xun got off the bus, he saw only a dilapidated temple and asked curiously, "Aunt, why did we stop here?"
The Dowager Princess replied casually, "I'm a little tired from the carriage ride, so I'll rest here."
When Zhao Xun saw Zhao Yin helping the Dowager Consort into the dilapidated temple, a thought struck him. His aunt's words seemed more like an excuse. She didn't seem to be out for a stroll; she seemed to have something to do.
Having noticed something amiss, Zhao Xun fell silent. Instead, Zhao Zeqian looked at the dilapidated temple with disdain. The temple doors and windows were gone, and inside were faded, broken clay sculptures and an old offering table.
The temple was small, and inside it was covered in dust, dirt, and the bones and weeds of small animals that wild beasts had left behind.
He had no intention of lingering there, so he pointed to the manor across the street and said, "Grandmother, why don't we rest at that manor over there? It's cleaner there."
The Empress Dowager glanced at Zhao Zeqian indifferently and ignored him.
"Zhao Yin, let the servants come in and rest as well," the Empress Dowager instructed.
Shang Yin nodded and went out for a while. Soon, four servants followed him into the temple.
The temple, which was not large to begin with, suddenly became crowded with nine people.
At this moment, the Dowager Consort sat on a stool specially brought by her maid, holding a book in her hand. The pages were open, revealing the gold pages inside.
Zhao Xun and his son had been watching the Empress Dowager's actions until they heard a thud. They turned around and saw that the four servants who had been brought in had all lost consciousness and collapsed on the ground.
"Zhao Yin, what are you doing?" Zhao Xun grabbed Zhao Zeqian's arm and took a few steps back warily.
Shang Yin did not speak, but the Dowager Princess rebuked him, "How old are you? You have no composure at all."
"Aunt, what exactly is going on?" Zhao Xun asked.
"There are some things to take care of. You and Zeqian should keep quiet and not disturb Zhao Yin."
Zhao Xun rolled his eyes and said, "If there's anything, Aunt can just tell Zeqian to do it. That child is very quick and efficient."
The Dowager Princess saw through her son's little scheme but didn't expose him, finding it rather amusing: "Alright, you two just behave yourselves and don't cause any trouble."
Shang Yin dragged the four servants to a spot not far from the Empress Dowager, and slashed their wrists as they lost consciousness. Seeing the bright red blood gushing out, Zhao Xun and his son's expressions changed.
The amount of bleeding from those servants was clearly abnormal, and Zhao Xun could tell that if this continued, they might not even be able to save their lives.
He didn't care about human lives, but this was the first time he had ever seen such a disregard for human life.
The Dowager watched this scene expressionlessly. Only after Shang Yin had finished dealing with it did she take out the gold leaf, holding only one corner and letting the rest soak in the blood.
After the gold leaf was soaked into the blood, it began to absorb the blood rapidly. Gradually, the originally ordinary gold leaf began to emit a flickering golden light. As the four servants' faces grew increasingly pale, the light on the gold leaf became more and more dazzling.
Finally, the golden light stopped flashing, and the golden page, saturated with blood, left the Empress Dowager's hand and floated in front of her.
At this moment, one of the servants lying on the ground had already stopped breathing.
The Dowager Consort didn't even look at them. She took the small knife handed to her by the maid, cut a gash on her index finger, and was about to write on the gold page with her own blood when she suddenly heard the sound of someone falling to the ground.
She looked up at Zhao Xun and his son, and seeing that they were both staring straight at her, she turned around as well.
She then noticed that the maidservant serving her had suddenly collapsed, and Shang Yin, who had attacked her, was slowly withdrawing his hand.
"Zhao Yin, what are you doing?" The Empress Dowager frowned and scolded.
Shang Yin turned to the Dowager Consort with a cryptic smile: "Grandmother, didn't you promise Grandfather that our first child would have the surname Shang? You should call me Shang Yin."
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