Chapter 113
Kongming Villa is divided into two courtyards, east and west. Prince Xin let the siblings live in the east courtyard, and he lived in the west courtyard. The two horizontal corridors on the left and right were connected. The front corridor was open on all sides as the main hall, and the back corridor was used as the dining hall. There were three rooms in the east courtyard, which was enough for Xie Yunchu and his brother to live in, but Xie Yunyou found a long couch and slept outside his sister's door every night.
This is treating Prince Xin as a thief.
Prince Xin was furious, but he had no way to deal with Xie Yunyou.
If he wanted a body, he would have had any woman over the years. What he wanted was Xie Yunchu.
In the morning, after Xie Yunchu washed up and had his meal, he went to Kong Wei's attic as usual.
After more than a month of getting along, she became Kong Wei's indispensable assistant with her dexterous hands. She greatly improved Kong Wei's efficiency in forging weapons and developing flying cars, and Kong Wei came to trust her more and more.
Xie Yunchu persuaded him when he had some free time.
"Brother Kong, my husband is the Prime Minister of the Cabinet. He values talent very much. You have such extraordinary ability, you should work in the Military Equipment Bureau, which can also benefit the army of Dajin and the people. I think your master joined the army of King Xin with the ambition of saving the world. King Xin has lost power and it is impossible for him to make a comeback. If you follow him, you will only bury your ability."
Kong Wei buried his head in the work in his hands and answered without thinking, "My master really wanted to emulate Zhuge Kongming and achieve great achievements. Unfortunately, I don't have the foresight of my master and I don't have great ambitions. I am content to make a living in the martial arts world with my skills."
Seeing that bribery failed, Xie Yunchu threatened, "Prince Xin is missing, and His Majesty will never let him go. Have you ever thought that one day the court will catch up with you and you will be caught in the crossfire?"
Kong Wei's first reaction was that Kongming Villa was impregnable and no one could attack it. Then she thought that there was artillery fire in the court. Once the whereabouts of Prince Xin were discovered, there was no guarantee that thousands of artillery would be fired at the same time. No matter how exquisitely designed the villa was, it would be destroyed in an instant. "Let's wait until your husband comes to find you."
Xie Yunchu's face slumped.
It's not that Wang Shuhuai doesn't have the ability, but he is afraid that he doesn't have the energy. Prince Xin has done a perfect job, and he might really think that she is dead. The government is so busy, and Western Chu has just been settled. Will he give up everything and go all out to find her?
Xie Yunchu had no answer in his mind, and reluctantly left the attic, and saw a person standing at the foot of the stone steps in front of him.
Prince Xin was holding a wooden tray with a purple clay cup on it and looking straight at her.
Xie Yunchu met his gloomy yet somewhat sharp eyes and subconsciously dodged. Prince Xin's sharpness was different from Wang Shuhuai's. His eyes were as sharp as an eagle's hook, as if she was his prey.
Xie Yunchu ignored him as usual, turned to the side, and came to the small wooden pavilion in front of the attic.
Prince Xin followed her and placed the bowl of red ginseng soup in front of her. He said in a gentle voice, "You have lost a lot of weight in the past few days. Your health is important. This is the red ginseng soup I made for you. Please drink a bowl."
The girl with red lips and white teeth looked a little thinner when she came to him, and her dark eyes looked even bigger, which made him feel distressed.
Xie Yunchu had never spoken to Prince Xin these days, and had ignored all of his overtures. But today, he lost his temper and yelled at him.
"How long do you plan to keep me here? Forever?"
Prince Xin gently pinched the cup with his rough fingertips, stared at her delicate eyebrows, and spoke in a calm tone,
"How could that be? It's only been a year."
Xie Yunchu stared at him coldly, "What do you mean?"
Prince Xin's expression was extremely gentle, "Yun Chu, after a year, if he remarries, you will give up."
Xie Yunchu was stunned for a moment, then laughed out of anger, "Whether he remarries or not does not conflict with my leaving. Even if he does, I still have a lot of great properties in the capital, and I can't live with you in hiding. Zhu Yun, have you thought about the future? You are just a poor enemy, nothing. Without Wang Shuhuai, I can't live with a poor enemy."
"You lost to Wang Shuhuai, and you are unwilling to accept it. All you did was just to vent your anger. You are doing this... It will make me look down on you!"
Xie Yunchu seldom cursed like this. She spoke very quickly, her chest heaving, and even her pretty face turned red.
Prince Xin did not show any extra emotions on his face from beginning to end, and looked at her calmly.
"Yun Chu, to tell you the truth, I have been running this business for so many years, and I still have many trusted friends and old friends. I still have the ability to fight back. Once the storm is over, I plan to take you back to Longxi, gather the remnants of the lineage of King Jing'an of Western Chu, and then use the Kongming chariot made by Kong Wei, and we can still compete with Wang Shuhuai."
"After a year, when Wang Shuhuai has a new wife, I believe you will give up. Sooner or later, you will accept me, and we will have a child."
"If by any chance Wang Shuhuai is determined to look for you, as long as he comes to Kongming Villa, I will spare his life."
“I see…” Xie Yunchu sneered, his eyes filled with hatred, “Your real purpose is to use me as bait to lure Wang Shuhuai.”
Xie Yunchu was furious, and shot an arrow from his sleeve straight at Prince Xin's face. Prince Xin was even faster, and he raised his hand to catch the arrow.
Seeing Xie Yunchu gritting his teeth, Prince Xin was quite helpless, but not in a hurry. Before Wang Shuhuai remarried, Xie Yunchu would definitely not accept him. After receiving news from the capital, he believed that sooner or later, he would be able to make Xie Yunchu let down his guard.
I've waited for so many years, I don't mind waiting a few more years.
At this time, near the back room, Xie Yunyou, who had gone to the back mountain to break through the barrier, sneaked back and took advantage of the confrontation between Xie Yunchu and Prince Xin to slip into Prince Xin's room.
During this period of time, he observed the whereabouts of Prince Xin, Kong Wei and others, and found that the three of them did not leave the water in front, nor went to the back mountain. New food and silk were delivered to the manor every now and then. Where the things came from, there must be a secret passage. Prince Xin was not often in the manor, and occasionally appeared and disappeared, so Xie Yunyou suspected that the secret passage was in Prince Xin's room.
Xie Yunyou sneaked in while Prince Xin was away. During this month, Xie Yunyou had gone through many trials and tribulations and had accumulated a lot of experience. In just a cup of tea, he found a secret room under the back wall of Prince Xin's study. He quietly pushed open the door of the secret room. The secret room was narrow and could only accommodate one person. There was an obvious tunnel leading down into the darkness.
Xie Yunyou didn't dare to go in easily and quickly retreated.
Late at night, Xie Yunyou was still sleeping at Xie Yunchu's door as usual. The night was like a light fog covering the entire villa. In the distance, a lantern was burning in a high corner of the corridor. The lantern was flickering, and the light was softly cast in the courtyard.
Noticing Xie Yunchu tossing and turning in the room, Xie Yunyou propped himself up and called out softly through the crack in the door.
"sister?"
Xie Yunchu heard his voice, turned over, put on his slippers, got off the couch and walked to the door, sat on a small stool in the corner and whispered, "You'er, what's wrong?"
Xie Yunyou stared at the direction of Prince Xin's room, leaned against the door, and whispered back to her,
"Today I found a secret passage in Prince Xin's room. Tomorrow, when Prince Xin is not at the villa, we will avoid Kong Wei and the other two and leave through the secret passage. No matter what is inside, let's go in."
Xie Yunchu was overjoyed, stroking his chest and sighing, "It just so happens that I can't stay here any longer. It's a matter of life or death, this is a do-or-die battle!"
With something on his mind, Xie Yunchu couldn't sleep well that night. He closed his eyes in the early morning, and didn't know what time he slept. When he opened his eyes in a daze, a smiling face came in from the window. It was Granny Shen.
Xie Yunchu rubbed his eyes, lifted the thin mattress and stood up, "Sorry, I got up late."
Granny Shen came in with a warm wooden basin and helped her wash up. "What's the big deal? His Royal Highness Prince Xin has already ordered that you can sleep as long as you want. Don't disturb you. There are no rules in our manor. If we really talk about rules, you are the biggest rule."
Xie Yunchu didn't like to hear her nagging about Prince Xin, and sneered, "Mother-in-law, I already have a husband and a pair of children. I can't possibly want him. I'd rather die in glory than live in disgrace. Sooner or later, I will leave."
Granny Shen looked at the beautiful young woman in the bronze mirror. She was seven or eight points of the beauty in the world. With such a look, it was no wonder that Prince Xin was obsessed with her. She sighed, "Granny understands this, but His Highness personally cooks for you and buys you clothes. This kind of thought has never been there before. Are you really not tempted?"
Outside the window, the autumn light was bright and the shadows were slanting. Xie Yunchu stroked her hair and looked away. Her eyes were pierced by the autumn sun and were filled with a watery light.
"My heart has already been promised to someone..."
Perhaps it started with a fleeting glimpse of him during the parade of the top scholar, or perhaps it was the formal first meeting in the imperial garden arranged by the eldest princess, or perhaps it was the little hugs, kisses, and even the blending of flesh and bones, the seed that sprouted from nowhere had already grown into a vine that entwined her heart, leaving no room for any gaps.
She slept until 9:00 p.m., ate some porridge, and walked out of the front hall. She saw Xie Yunyou standing at the door of Kong Wei's attic from afar. There were banging sounds coming from inside. Kong Wei was still fiddling with his mechanical weapons as usual.
Xie Yunyou leaned against the doorstep with his arms folded across his chest. He saw his sister come out and pointed toward the pavilion in front. The brother and sister moved over to talk.
Xie Yunyou looked around, “Prince Xin disappeared early this morning. I suspect he left the villa. Without further ado, I will deal with Kong Wei, and you use the silver needle to knock down Granny Shen.”
Xie Yunchu shook his head and looked in the direction of the attic, “Kong Wei is not on guard against me, you go deal with Granny Shen, I’ll take care of Kong Wei.”
Xie Yunyou glanced towards the kitchen, still worried, "I'll go to the kitchen first, you wait for me, let's work together on Kong Wei's side."
Xie Yunchu nodded solemnly, "Then be careful."
She arrived at the attic first. Kong Wei was already familiar with Xie Yunchu's footsteps. Without even turning his head, he pointed to a pulley on his left side and said, "Miss Xie, help me lubricate that pulley."
Xie Yunchu looked at his back deeply, rolled up his sleeves and went over to help.
The kitchen was in the back room. Xie Yunyou walked along the stone path and entered from the corner door. He saw Granny Shen carrying Xie Yunchu's breakfast back to the kitchen to clean up. He wiped his mouth and followed Granny Shen into the kitchen with a smile on his face.
"Mother-in-law, I didn't have enough for breakfast. Do you have any more buns? The sauerkraut buns you make are delicious."
Xie Yunyou was good-looking and the youngest one here. Granny Shen looked at him like her own nephew, and turned around to lift the lid of the pot with a smile, "There are no buns, but there is a steamed bun..."
Before she finished speaking, a sharp pain came from the back of her neck, Granny Shen’s eyes rolled back, and her body went limp.
Xie Yunyou first hurriedly took out the steamed bun from the pot and quickly stuffed it into Grandma Shen's mouth. Then he found a thick rope for tying firewood in the corner, dragged Grandma Shen under the stove, and tied her under the wooden pillar of the window.
After doing all this, Xie Yunyou dusted himself off, calmed his breath, and strode out of the kitchen.
Exiting the corner door of the back room, he came to Kong Wei's attic and peeked inside through the window. He saw Xie Yunchu squatting beside Kong Wei, busying himself, while Kong Wei was humming a little tune, looking relaxed.
So Xie Yunyou put his hands on the window frame and talked to Kong Wei in a lazy manner.
"Isn't this Kongming lantern fixed? When can you take me and my sister up to the sky to have a look?"
Kong Wei stood up and shook the curtain of the Kongming lantern. Hearing what he said, he laughed out loud, "Master You, please don't embarrass me. His Royal Highness Prince Xin will not agree to it."
Xie Yunyou sneered, "Why ask him to agree? You are not his subordinate, nor his servant..."
"You can't say that..." Kong Weizheng raised his eyes and looked at Xie Yunyou.
Xie Yunchu behind him seized the opportunity and decisively inserted the five silver needles under his sleeves into his Fengchi and Fengfu acupoints...
Kong Wei only felt the back of his head was paralyzed, and his body was obviously shaking. He was completely defenseless against Xie Yunchu, and his alertness was far less than that of Prince Xin, so Xie Yunchu succeeded. He slowly turned around holding the lamp stand and looked at Xie Yunchu in disbelief.
Xie Yunchu had already retreated to the side and hid behind a wooden board. Kong Wei was not without hidden weapons, but he remembered Prince Xin's order firmly that he was not allowed to attack Xie Yunchu at any time. As a result of his hesitation, Xie Yunyou rushed in from the window and pounced on him, pinning him down firmly.
What happened next was a natural progression. Xie Yunchu used the cartilage powder that Kong Wei had taught her to poison him and make him pass out. Xie Yunyou tied him up and took him to the utility room in the corner. Then the brother and sister quickly ran to Prince Xin's room.
As soon as the door was opened, Xie Yunyou pulled Xie Yunchu towards the secret room, but the door of the secret room was suddenly opened from the inside.
Their eyes met. Xie Yunyou's sight collided with Prince Xin's gloomy gaze.
Prince Xin immediately realized something, stepped out of the secret room slowly, and asked with a smile, "Want to leave?"
Xie Yunyou stared at him warily and protected his sister behind him.
Xie Yunchu was so nervous that sweat broke out on his forehead. Looking at Prince Xin's determined eyes, a trace of despair arose in his heart.
Prince Xin crossed his arms over his chest and looked at the siblings. Just as he was about to say something, a cannon suddenly sounded outside. A strange look flashed across Prince Xin's eyes.
"Someone is attacking the mountain!"
Without saying a word, he used a grappling move and stopped Xie Yunyou at an incredible speed. Xie Yunyou only knew some martial arts and was no match for Prince Xin.
After Prince Xin knocked Xie Yunyou unconscious with a palm strike, he grabbed Xie Yunchu's wrist and led his men out of the house, walking along the stone path in the courtyard and out of the gate.
There were continuous gunshots from the lake ahead which was covered with the Bagua formation. The mist and dust mixed together to dye the gorgeous autumn day grey. Based on his many years of experience in marching and fighting, Prince Xin judged that there should be no less than ten tiger squatting cannons ahead, firing at the deep mountains on both sides and the lake ahead.
If he guessed correctly, Wang Shuhuai was planning to destroy the formation of Kongming Villa.
All the formations and mechanisms are nothing in the face of artillery fire.
Despite such a big commotion, there was no sign of Kong Wei and Granny Shen, which clearly showed that something had happened.
A bitter smile appeared on Prince Xin's lips.
He left the village today because he received a tip-off that Wang Shuhuai had led his troops to attack Nanyang. Wang Shuhuai was marching at night and also mobilized troops from nearby garrisons. When the spies outside brought in the news, the people had already arrived.
Prince Xin realized an unprecedented crisis.
Outside the villa, the sound of soldiers fighting could be heard coming from far away. Prince Xin guessed that the troops he had ambushed outside had been discovered by Wang Shuhuai's men, and the two sides must be fighting. After thinking for a moment, he dragged Xie Yunchu to an inconspicuous manhole cover in the middle of the front yard. He stepped on the circular mechanism in the middle of the manhole cover and shouted to the front,
"Wang Shuhuai, are you planning to die together?"
A ton of gunpowder is buried in the secret passage of Kongming Villa. Once he steps on the fuse, the entire villa will be reduced to ashes.
Soon, the artillery fire stopped and the swirling water mist gradually dissipated. A man stood on the shore of the water in front, with his white shirt and sleeves fluttering. Countless dust fell around him. He seemed to have appeared from the dust, with a layer of white gauze covering his eyes. He concentrated and listened carefully in this direction. It was Wang Shuhuai.
In the bushes far behind him, thousands of archers were in position, and ten tiger-crouching cannons were mounted on wooden frames, ready to attack the villa at any time.
When Xie Yunchu saw the familiar figure, tears rolled down his eyes and he couldn't wait to call out,
"Shu Huai!"
He is coming...
He actually came.
Her experience in her previous life made her dare not have any expectations of this man, and Prince Xin did everything perfectly, so she never thought he would come. But when she was trapped in this dark villa, she had a glimmer of expectation in her heart, hoping that he would come.
He is finally here.
When Wang Shuhuai heard his wife's voice, his silent heart skipped a beat. He carefully identified the direction and quickly moved closer.
"Chu'er!"
Below the wide flat ground was a vegetable patch. Wang Shuhuai flew over the water and came to the edge of the field. When he got closer, Xie Yunchu saw clearly that his eyes were wrapped in gauze. His heart sank suddenly, "Shuhuai, what's wrong with your eyes?" He subconsciously rushed forward.
Upon seeing this, Prince Xin immediately pulled the person back, handcuffed her hands behind her back, and then stepped on a mechanism. The wooden frame that was originally lying in the vegetable patch instantly folded upwards to form a wooden ladder, extending from under Wang Shuhuai's feet all the way to in front of Prince Xin.
Prince Xin grinned, looked at Wang Shuhuai at the foot of the mountain, and said in a cold tone, "Do you have the guts to come up?"
Wang Shuhuai slightly turned sideways, his slender figure standing out on the ridge of the field. The vast dust and mist had become his background. He did not intend to waste words with Prince Xin, and asked directly,
"Tell me what you want me to do in order for you to let her go."
Prince Xin smiled grimly, "It's very simple, take your life in exchange for hers."
He wanted to see what position Wang Shuhuai placed Xie Yunchu in.
Kongming Villa was full of traps, and Wang Shuhuai couldn't see clearly, so he simply covered his eyes and listened to the sound to determine the location. He didn't hesitate and asked, "How do I change it?"
Prince Xin's breath was choked. He didn't expect Wang Shuhuai to be so straightforward. He immediately said with a cold look, "This ladder is called the Cloud Ladder. If you pass the eighteen levels, you will be crippled if not dead. As long as you can stand on the manhole cover in front of me, I will let Yun Chu go."
Wang Shuhuai walked up without saying a word. Just as he took a step, a dozen darts pierced his face. He spun sideways to avoid them. More and more dense silver needles shot from all directions. Wang Shuhuai raised his sleeves to wrap them up, and his body flew in the air like a whirlwind until all the silver needles had passed. His long shadow flashed and landed on the third step of the wooden ladder. He opened his left hand, and a handful of silver needles fell into the green vegetable patch. His palm was covered with a layer of blood.
Blood dripped down his slender fingers, and as the wind blew, it sprinkled on his snow-white clothes like fallen plum blossoms.
His expression did not change at all, and there seemed to be a trace of awe-inspiring energy between his brows that could turn all the thorns and bumps in the world into flowing smoke, shaking the heavens and the earth, and also grasping Xie Yunchu's mind.
"Shuhuai..." she murmured, her heart being burned by the scorching heat and also being ironed by the heat. She subconsciously bent over in pain and tried to pull her wrist free, but her strength was no match for Prince Xin.
The autumn was dry, and the artillery shells fired into the woods sent up billowing clouds of thick smoke.
A spark suddenly appeared and gradually spread like wildfire.
Every time Wang Shuhuai climbed two steps, the blood on his collar became more blurred, and an iron nail pierced through his shoulder bone. Flames of fiery silver light passed through his body, but he kept moving forward with all his might.
Even though he couldn't see her clearly, she knew he was looking at her, and the throbbing that had once disappeared violently returned, churning violently in her heart like a drum.
We can't just sit there and wait for death.
Xie Yunchu held back her tears and continued to struggle. While Prince Xin was concentrating on Wang Shuhuai, she quietly reached into her sleeves. Since the first day she was abducted, Xie Yunchu had found a tiny blade and hid it under her sleeves. She would not have any luck with Prince Xin and would always be on guard against him doing anything despicable.
He reached the thin blade with the tip of his index finger and slowly peeled it off from the collar, holding it in the palm of his hand, waiting in secret.
Prince Xin stared at Wang Shuhuai for a while, and saw that his body shape was unpredictable. Even though he was covered with wounds, his movements were still smooth and natural. He climbed the eighteen levels of the Cloud Ladder, and each level was fatal. He didn't believe that Wang Shuhuai had no backup plan. Suddenly, an idea popped up in his mind.
"Are you stalling for time?"
He glanced into the courtyard with hawk-like eyes, and indeed saw a dozen dark shadows leaping out from the direction of his room.
The leader was the murderous Lengshan, who drew out the rapier from his waist sharply, his eyes turned cold, and rushed straight to the face of King Xin.
Prince Xin fell backwards, barely avoiding his sword. However, because he was holding Xie Yunchu in his hand, it was inconvenient for him to fight back. He was forced to move away from the manhole cover and retreat quickly with Xie Yunchu. The mechanism of the wooden ladder stopped suddenly. Seeing this, Wang Shuhuai quickly turned over and jumped, chasing in the direction of Xie Yunchu. Based on Xie Yunchu's breathing, he could tell that Xie Yunchu was on the right side of Prince Xin.
Prince Xin pulled out the spear beside the manhole cover and fought with Lengshan. Seeing that Wang Shuhuai was also chasing him, he turned his wrist and planned to use Xie Yunchu to force him back. At this time, Xie Yunchu frowned, and when he changed his strength, the thin blade quickly slashed across his wrist.
Prince Xin felt pain and glanced at Xie Yunchu with shock in his eyes. At the critical moment, Wang Shuhuai heard Prince Xin take a breath and decisively pressed the trigger of the crossbow under his sleeve. In order to prevent Prince Xin from hurting Xie Yunchu, Wang Shuhuai pointed the tip of the sword at Prince Xin's right wrist.
Prince Xin knew that death was approaching, and his eyes were fixed on Xie Yunchu without moving. Her pretty face was as pale as a flower, just like the Flower Festival that year when all the flowers were in full bloom. She was hiding behind a peony flower at the Xiao family's home. When she heard footsteps, her little face, as pink and white as jade, peeked out from behind the petals. When she saw it was him, she was so frightened that she hid back. That moment of amazement was enough to brighten up his entire dull life.
The arrow pierced through his forehead with a whizzing sound, and Lengshan's sword pierced into his abdomen at the same time. A ball of blood exploded, and the mighty body of Prince Xin fell straight back, and was propped up in the air by Lengshan's arrow. He stared at the sky full of smoke with his teeth bared and his eyes wide open, and died with his eyes open.
Xie Yunchu was splashed with blood, his face turned pale with fear, and he covered his ears and rushed towards Wang Shuhuai.
"Shuhuai..." There was lingering fear in her crying voice.
Wang Shuhuai, with his blood-stained shirt on, endured the pain of the iron nail piercing his shoulder bone, threw away the crossbow under his sleeve, opened his arms, and embraced the girl he had been pursuing.
"Yun Chu..."
Xie Yunchu threw himself into his arms.
The bloody smell hit her in the face, along with the sweat tainted with the scent of water plants, and the original pine scent on his body, all of which poured into her lungs. Xie Yunchu's tears wetted his clothes, and she put her arms through his armpits, holding his shoulder bones tightly against his heart.
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