Chapter 311: Mountain Top

Chen Shiyi stood up slowly, not daring to move.

She wanted to speak, but the sharp dagger penetrated deeper into her back.

"If you want to live, shut up."

It was hard to tell whether the voice behind was male or female. Chen Shiyi felt a little uneasy, but she also understood that if they were here to kill her, they would have already done it, leaving her no chance to recover.

She was in front and the assassin was behind. The two of them walked like master and servant. Even if there were people in the house, they did not notice anything unusual.

Chen Shiyi followed the assassin's instructions and walked to the back of a woodshed, where she was hit on the back of the neck by the assassin. She instantly saw darkness before her eyes.

When she woke up again, she was awakened by pain. She shook her head and subconsciously looked around at the unfamiliar place.

She stood in an octagonal pavilion, surrounded by tree shadows. The mountains in the distance rose and fell like sleeping beasts.

The mountain breeze was so cold that it blew into my clothes and froze my bones.

Chen Shiyi couldn't help but shiver.

In front of him was a stone bench, and opposite him sat a black figure.

Taking advantage of the dim light from the lantern nearby, Chen Shiyi finally saw the person opposite him clearly.

She shook her sleeves, clasped her hands together, bent her waist and saluted the person in front of her.

"I have met Master Zhang."

Master Zhang on the opposite side had an arrogant look on his face, as if seeing Chen Shiyi was an insult to him.

"Please take a seat, future queen."

Chen Shiyi smiled.

"This approval is entirely dependent on Master Taifu's approval."

She looked around.

"Master Zhang, do you have any guards here? Can one of them give me a coat? It's really cold here."

"Don't look at them. They are nearby. You can't run away."

"They are so confident. If I wanted to kill you, they wouldn't have time to run away."

Master Zhang sneered contemptuously, as if he didn't care at all.

"Were you the one who issued the bounty order for Qingzhou?"

Chen Shiyi nodded.

"That's me."

"Withdraw, otherwise, you know the consequences."

Chen Shiyi asked with a smile.

"Master Zhang has benefited from this, right?"

Master Zhang's eyes were bright as he looked Chen Shiyi up and down.

"Your bounty order is fake, but your real intention is to meet me, right?"

Chen Shiyi shivered a few times due to the cold.

"It's true that I issued a bounty order, and it's also true that I want to see you, but Master Zhang's methods are not very good. I have been waiting in the mansion for so long, and the doghouse is almost ready, but your talents can get in. It shows that the capable people under you are really getting fewer and fewer."

Master Zhang looked at her with deep eyes.

"Do you know why I want to see you?"

Chen Shiyi nodded.

"I know. Isn't it to cancel the bounty order?"

"What?"

"I promised His Majesty that I would cancel the bounty order, but then I decided to forget it. I have too much money now and I don't know where to spend it. I'll find a way to spend it and have some fun."

Master Zhang's words were still cold and gloomy.

"Don't be so arrogant."

"When it comes to arrogance, I am still inferior to Master Zhang. The killer organization Wuxin Pavilion has existed longer than Daye, so naturally they have some means of self-protection. Master Zhang should have thought about eradicating Wuxin Pavilion, but it would affect the entire body if he moved one thing, and you, wouldn't dare to do that!"

Master Zhang had a complicated expression.

"I originally thought you were a business woman who was not worthy of being on the stage. I never thought you had such foresight to drag in the underworld forces and control me."

Chen Shiyi smiled and nodded.

"They are just some small things, just to tickle you. Judging from your face, you haven't been sleeping well recently. No wonder you can sit on the top of this mountain with me in the middle of the night and talk about life events. You are really respectable and admirable."

A hint of coldness appeared on Master Zhang's lips.

"You've been struggling like this, but in the end you've only made things easier for other women. He loves you deeply, but the path he should take was wrong. You always think that love can defeat everything, but reality is often defeated by power, desire, and time. Love is poison, and some people go crazy after drinking it. As time goes by, the poison gradually dissipates, and human nature is revealed. The days between you will not be easy, because you chose love and gave up everything that should belong to you, leaving you with nothing. In the end, all that is left is mutual abuse and resentment."

"Is it not possible for two people to work together while still having feelings for each other and then have other things?"

"Look, you are getting greedy. What are the other things you are talking about? Power? Money? Power requires the accumulation of connections, and the connections here include in-laws. Remember, they are in-laws, not friends or confidants. Those are useless. And money. Money, more importantly, requires power, but it also requires time. When he makes money, he will have less time to spend with you. Your deep love also depends on time and money. These two are inherently contradictory. So, are you greedy?"

“People cannot be generalized.”

"You always think you are an exception, but no one is. The world is fair, and no one can always get what they want."

Chen Shiyi shook his head.

"You are wrong. The world is unfair. Take the Zhang clan for example. Once they had power, they wanted to get more. To get more, they ate the people's food, embezzled the money for disaster relief, seized the people's land, and even wanted to seize your Majesty's power. But now, they are still enjoying the ultimate wealth in the world. Can this be considered fair?"

Master Zhang remained silent.

"Fairness is the law you set for the lower classes. It doesn't apply to you at all."

After listening to Chen Shiyi's words, Zhang Taifu stroked his beard.

"Let's get back to the point. If you cancel the bounty order, I'll leave you a way out."

Chen Shiyi shook his head.

"I have already given enough money to Wuxin Pavilion. Don't worry. If you kill Mr. Situ's family, I will also kill your descendants. This is true fairness."

Master Zhang's face turned cold.

"Aren't you afraid of death?"

Chen Shiyi laughed at himself.

"I have been waiting to die since the day the bounty was placed."

Master Zhang asked doubtfully.

"You are willing to die for His Majesty. Hasn't His Majesty been preparing for your canonization? You don't want your position as queen? You don't want his so-called deep love either?"

"With your hand blocking me, is there any room for me?"

“That’s a shame.”

After saying this, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his body.

Chen Shiyi looked at his painful expression and smiled.

"Is the poison taking effect?"

Master Zhang stared at Chen Shiyi in disbelief.

"When did you administer the poison?"

"When I bowed to you just now, the wind blew it to you."

"What? You clearly have nothing on you."