52. Betrayal
Prince Jing, Zhu Youxiao.
His mother, Concubine Li, passed away early, and the young Prince Jing was adopted by the current Empress Dowager. He grew up with Emperor Ning and they were as close as brothers.
When Emperor Ning ascended the throne at the age of eleven, Zhu Youxiao was fourteen years old, and Empress Dowager Liu was in control of the government.
For six years, Zhu Youxiao worked hard to win over northern civil servants and inspectors for Emperor Ning and weaken the power of his foreign relatives.
Emperor Ning finally took power at the age of seventeen, and named Zhu Youxiao Prince Jing at the age of twenty-one.
Everything was originally calm, but in recent years, Prince Jing has been rectifying the administration outside the palace, repairing rivers to provide disaster relief, and preparing food and fodder for the border troops, and his reputation has been growing.
The Imperial Household Department began to find ways to make things difficult for Prince Jing's Mansion. Many of Prince Jing's former subordinates were thrown into prison, and even the eunuchs around Prince Jing were replaced by new people from the Imperial Household Department.
Some people said that there was a rift between Emperor Ning and Prince Jing, while others said that Prince Jing gradually developed rebellious intentions.
Even last year, on Emperor Ning's 42nd birthday, Prince Jing did not return to Beijing because he was repairing the river and providing disaster relief.
The brothers of the past suddenly became strangers.
Just like in the storyteller's stories, everyone becomes boring once they become a king.
Chen Ji thought of his master's superb divination skills, and suddenly felt deeply worried. If his master really wanted to borrow the dragon energy of Prince Jing's Mansion to train his apprentice, then Prince Jing's Mansion might not be able to survive this disaster.
The Jing Dynasty Military Intelligence Department, the Ning Dynasty Secret Service Department, and the Liu family are like a huge whirlpool, about to drag Prince Jing's Mansion into the seabed.
As the saying goes, fortune and honor are sought in danger, and where there is disaster, there will be ice flows. Master is not using divination to avoid misfortune and seek good fortune, it is obvious that he is using divination to lead himself into a big pit!
Wuyun said good night to Chenji and climbed over the wall back to Wanxingyuan.
Chen Ji stood alone at the counter, quietly thinking about his current situation.
While I was thinking, I heard some noise coming from the backyard.
Boom boom boom.
There was a knock on the door.
Chen Ji frowned. It was already midnight and dawn would come in two more hours. Why was there still someone coming to his door?
Is it the Golden Pig? I wonder what the Golden Pig’s intention is in coming to the clinic at this time?
He went to open the door.
However, the moment the main door of the clinic was opened, Chen Ji's heart suddenly palpitated and he took a few steps back!
But the person who came was none other than the deceased manager Yuan of Bailu Pavilion!
Shopkeeper Yuan had a pale face, a strange smile, and a cold aura emanating from his body.
Chen Ji had witnessed with his own eyes that Si Cao pinched the chin of the shopkeeper Yuan and inserted the knife into his heart inch by inch, crushing his heart into pieces.
But how can someone with a broken heart come back to life?!
Rumble, dull autumn thunder sounded in the sky. Dark clouds covered Luo City at some point, and cold rain began to fall.
This was the first rain since Chen Ji came to Luocheng. Unlike the continuous and fine autumn rain, it was heavy and fast.
Amidst the lightning and thunder, Chen Ji no longer retreated. He pulled out the dagger that had been hidden in his sleeve at some point, and stabbed Manager Yuan in the neck with it.
But before the knife arrived, Manager Yuan gently raised his hand and pinched the tip of the knife with two fingers, preventing Chen Ji from moving forward.
The tip of the knife just stopped, as if time and space were frozen.
Shopkeeper Yuan smiled and said, "Don't be so nervous. It's not Shopkeeper Yuan's ghost that's looking for you. It's me, the Chief of the Military Intelligence Department."
Chen Ji was shocked. He looked at the shopkeeper Yuan in front of him. His expression was natural, without any abnormality. Who would have thought that this was a human skin mask?
Human skin mask?
He had only heard of this kind of thing in stories.
He was wondering who would take over after the owner of Bailu Pavilion Yuan died without any reason.
It turned out that Si Cao himself was dressed up as Manager Yuan.
Chen Ji slowly loosened his grip: "Master Si Cao, I'm sorry, I didn't know it was you."
But Si Cao smiled and soothed him, "It's a good thing to be vigilant. How could I blame you?"
"Master Si Cao, why are you here so late at night?"
"I have some bad news for you," Si Cao said in a serious tone. "The efforts to arrange for the spies who knew of your existence to withdraw to the north resulted in the rebellion of a pigeon-level spy. We've been searching for him for two days, but his whereabouts remain unknown. I suspect he will defect to the Ning Dynasty Secret Service... or he has already defected."
Chen Ji's heart tightened.
A Jing Dynasty spy who knew of his existence had defected? Wouldn't that mean he would die?
He asked in a serious tone, "Which spy is it? Has he seen me?"
Si Cao walked into the clinic, turned around and closed the main door, then slowly said: "He is Zhou Chengyi's subordinate. He has seen you in Zhou Chengyi's mansion."
Have you seen me?
Chen Ji thought quickly in his mind. If the other party had seen him in Zhou Chengyi's house, then he must know that he was an apprentice in the clinic.
At this time, the spy should not have defected. If he had, Jin Zhu would have brought people to kill him long ago.
But why would the other party defect?
Chen Ji pretended to be puzzled: "What's wrong with arranging a retreat back to the Jing Dynasty in the north? We don't have to worry about Ning Dynasty anymore. Why would it lead to his rebellion?"
Si Cao explained, "This man is one of the best spies in our Military Intelligence Department, and he's always been efficient and ruthless. I sent him a message to prepare to evacuate, but he thought I was going to silence him, so he killed the messenger and disappeared."
No, no, no, it won't be that simple.
Chen Ji frowned.
Judging from the character of this Si Cao, he probably really wanted to kill to silence the witness, but the people he sent did not expect that the spy would be so difficult to deal with, and was killed by him instead.
"Master Si Cao, does he know why you...arranged for him to evacuate?" Chen Ji asked.
"Of course we won't tell him about this," Si Cao replied.
Therefore, the rebellious spy still didn't know why he was silenced.
However, once the other party really turns to the Secret Service, they will definitely reveal everything they know, and then... they will be in danger!
"Master Si Cao, may I ask where he might be hiding... Hmm?" Chen Ji sensed something was wrong and quickly retreated.
But how could his retreat be as fast as the other party's pursuit?
In just a breath, Chen Ji was grabbed by the throat by the other party with one hand and lifted into the air.
Si Cao sighed and said, "Don't make a sound, or I'll have to kill everyone in the entire courtyard."
Chen Ji struggled hard, his face flushed red.
However, in front of an official like Si Cao who had practiced for many years, he, a novice who had just started, had no room to resist.
Chen Ji wanted to shout loudly to call out to the sleeping Liang Gouer to take action, but his throat was no longer able to make any sound.
He could only struggle and write on the back of the other person's hand with his fingers: Why kill me?
Si Cao did not answer, but just stared at Chen Ji's pupils quietly, as if he was looking at a dead specimen.
Chen Ji's mind flashed with thoughts. The reason why Si Cao wanted to kill him was because he wanted to completely clean up the intelligence clues that the defected spy might reveal.
This is the purge policy commonly used by all intelligence agencies. Intelligence work is extraordinary. Once a flaw appears, the entire team needs to be evacuated or purged.
If the defecting spy betrays Chen Ji, Chen Ji might betray Bailu Pavilion.
Bailu Pavilion as Jingchao Military Intelligence
This is one of the company’s biggest sources of income within the Ning Dynasty, and it cannot be lost!
Chen Ji was extremely anxious. He quickly looked around, trying to find a way to save himself, but the gunpowder was not yet made. Even if it was, at this distance, he would at most die together with Si Cao.
The two most important words in this world are power and strength.
Chen Ji had imagined himself living peacefully in a clinic as an imperial physician, and he had also imagined wandering around the world, escaping from the Secret Service and the Military Intelligence Department. However, all these fantasies were not supported by strength and power, and were just delusions.
Practice!
Practice is the most important thing!
But what should I do now?
At this moment, there was another knock on the door of the clinic!
Boom boom boom.
The sound seemed a little dull in the rain, but it was particularly abrupt.
Si Cao's pupils suddenly contracted. He carried Chen Ji quickly to the corner of the main hall, his eyes flickering, as if he was thinking about whether to kill Chen Ji directly and then break out.
He looked at Chen Ji, and Chen Ji quickly wrote on the back of his hand with his fingers: I'll handle it!
The clinic fell silent, with only the sound of rain outside remaining.
After a moment, Si Cao whispered, "You know what to do. If you ask for help, you will die first."
Chen Ji struggled and nodded.
Si Cao put Chen Ji down and slowly loosened his hand.
Chen Ji rubbed his neck and asked calmly, "Who is it?"
The person outside the door said calmly, "Golden Pig, open the door. I need you. It's the same agreement as with Cloud Sheep and Bright Rabbit. Each transaction will cost fifty taels of silver."
Si Cao and Chen Ji exchanged a glance, and Chen Ji lowered his voice and quickly said, "He must not have caught the traitorous spy yet, otherwise he wouldn't be so polite."
"Then what is he doing here?"
Chen Ji said hurriedly, "Your search for the rebel spy must have alerted the Secret Service. They're probably trying to find this person before you do. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I can use the Secret Service to find him and see what clues they have."
Si Cao's face was calm and his emotions were invisible. A voice urged him from outside the door again: "Boy, open the door quickly."
Chen Ji said again, "Lord Si Cao, although Yun Yang and Jiao Tu have been imprisoned, I have gained the trust of Jin Zhu and can still approach the Minister of Internal Affairs. I know you care about Bai Lu Pavilion, and I care as much as you do. This is my loyalty to the Jing Dynasty. Don't worry, I will find this traitor and find a way to get rid of him!"
Si Cao narrowed his eyes slightly. "Think about the consequences before you act. If you ask the Golden Pig for help, you will inevitably expose your identity as a Jing Dynasty spy. At that time, even if you surrender, the Golden Pig will definitely not let you go. You know how much they hate us."
"clear!"
Si Cao slowly retreated behind the counter and squatted down, listening with his ears perked up.
Chen Ji adjusted his collar to cover the pinch marks while walking towards the door and opening it.
Outside the door, the Golden Pig, wearing a straw raincoat and a bamboo hat, stood in the pouring rain and asked, "What's taking you so long?"
Behind the Golden Pig, there were more than a dozen spies wearing straw raincoats standing solemnly.
Chen Ji whispered, "Someone just got up to pee, so they were delayed... What brings you here, Master Jinzhu?"
Jin Zhu said, "Come with me. We caught a spy from the Military Intelligence Department in Red Lane. They seem to be hunting for a renegade spy. We have to find this person first. This person is very important!"
After saying that, Jin Zhu had someone throw a straw raincoat to Chen Ji.
Chen Ji put on his straw raincoat and glanced casually at the clinic counter.
In the end, he did not point out Si Cao, but just put on his raincoat and turned to walk into the heavy rain.
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