After receiving Niu Da's detailed report, Concubine Wang was struck by a foreboding premonition. She quickly decided to personally visit Wen Hejun's residence to confirm the situation. With a group of attendants, Concubine Wang hurried to Wen Hejun's residence.
When she pushed open the door, the scene before her made her heart tighten. The room was empty, with only Wen Hejun's clothes scattered on the floor.
Concubine Wang frowned as she grabbed the clothes and angrily ordered, "Immediately send someone to find out where Wen Hejun is now. General Niu, lead a group of elite soldiers out of the city immediately and go to where the Wei people are stationed to see if they have all evacuated."
After sending Niu Da away, Concubine Wang did not delay at all and immediately led the elite guards of the imperial palace to the side hall where the King of Shu was imprisoned. When she arrived at the door of the side hall, she found that the guards at the door were still guarding faithfully, and the eunuchs and palace maids inside the side hall were busy as usual, as if everything was normal.
When Concubine Wang entered the palace, the guards knelt and saluted, showing great respect to her. However, Concubine Wang was too anxious to pay attention to these red tape and went straight to the King of Shu's room. However, the eunuchs and palace maids blocked her way, trying to stop her from moving forward.
Concubine Wang said angrily, "Everyone get out of my way. I have something urgent to see the King of Shu."
However, an elderly eunuch spoke up to dissuade her, saying, "Your Highness, you absolutely cannot do this! His Majesty the King of Shu is seriously ill and is receiving treatment in his chambers. Your Highness must not go in, or else you might catch this strange disease, which would be very troublesome."
Concubine Wang couldn't help but hesitate as she smelled the medicinal aroma that filled the courtyard. After all, the Shu King's condition was beyond the reach of all the Shu Kingdom's imperial doctors, and it would be disastrous if she were to be infected with the strange disease.
Just as Concubine Wang was about to turn and leave, she suddenly noticed something unusual. The two burly men who usually stood in her way—Liu Shan and Liu Pei—were nowhere to be seen today. Whenever she had brought people to the King of Shu, these two burly men had always stepped forward to stop her. Why was it so quiet today? This made her wonder.
When she was not troubled by her infatuation, Concubine Wang showed her extraordinary shrewdness and decisiveness. She did not hesitate to push away the eunuchs who tried to stop her, and walked towards the room where the King of Shu lived with firm steps.
Although the eunuchs and palace maids wanted to continue blocking her way, the guards who came with Concubine Wang pushed them away without mercy, clearing the way for her to move forward.
Without hesitation, Concubine Wang ordered her men to kick down the Prince of Shu's door. However, when she entered, she found it empty. This discovery made her realize the seriousness of the situation, and she immediately ordered: "Quickly send men to seal the gates of Rongcheng and search the entire city for the Prince of Shu and his wife."
Concubine Wang no longer had any intention of concealing her actions and decided to take more direct and decisive measures to achieve her goal. She knew that as long as she could successfully kill the King of Shu, she would be able to inherit the control of Shu, although this control might not be very strong. But now she had no other choice.
In the past, Concubine Wang had planned for the King of Shu to die of natural causes, thus ensuring her son would inherit the Kingdom without any problems. However, with the King's mysterious disappearance, her previous plans were no longer feasible. She realized she had to act quickly to ensure the future of Shu remained in her own hands, without any further mishaps.
When Niu Da arrived at the city gate, he was surprised to find that the soldiers of Rongcheng were unable to leave the city wall. At this moment, the city gate of Rongcheng was surrounded by a blazing sea of fire, making it impossible for them to break through this blazing barrier.
As time went by, Concubine Wang and important officials of Shu Kingdom also rushed to the city wall. They stood on the high wall, overlooking the scene outside the city that was engulfed by flames, their hearts filled with confusion and shock.
They never expected that the State of Wei would take such a bold action.
Wang Batian, the head of the Wang family, stood on the city wall, gazing at the empty and desolate land beyond the Sea of Fire. He had already understood all the key links in his mind.
He sighed deeply, his tone filled with a hint of helplessness and emotion: "I really didn't expect that the Wei Kingdom would be willing to pay such a huge price for the Liu family. Five million kilograms of refined salt, just to set up this trap, just to rescue Liu Yu's family."
Meanwhile, the ministers standing on the city wall had their own thoughts. Those who stood with the Wang family were filled with worry.
They were worried that if King Liu Yu of Shu escaped again and defected to Wei, receiving Wei's aid, he would surely make a comeback. Life would then become extremely difficult for those who followed the Wang family in their evil deeds.
The ministers who had accompanied the King of Shu in his great undertakings were both delighted by his achievements and deeply concerned about his health. They silently prayed that if he could successfully escape to Wei, there might be a chance for him to recover from his illness and regain his health.
Meanwhile, those ministers who had previously been in contact with Liu Xueyu felt a sense of bitterness and loss. After all, the King of Shu had left without prior notice, leaving them feeling left out and uneasy. They had also been unable to offer any assistance during the King's escape, leaving them feeling guilty and powerless.
Wang Batian turned his gaze to Concubine Wang, who immediately understood his intentions. She decisively ordered, "General Chu, immediately lead your troops to pursue Wen Hejun and the Wei soldiers. At the same time, send messengers to the cities along the Wei route, informing them to be on the lookout for intercepting these Wei soldiers."
The ministers present did not raise any objection to Concubine Wang's order, and Chu Shen immediately took the order and prepared to carry out the mission.
As for why she didn't order Niu Da to lead the troops in pursuit, it was because Concubine Wang knew that Niu Da had a very close relationship with King Liu Yu of Shu. If she had ordered Niu Da to lead the troops in pursuit, it would probably be like throwing a meat bun at a dog, with no return, and would not achieve the desired effect.
As for why Concubine Wang referred to the Wei civilians as soldiers, it was because Wei and Shu had long maintained friendly relations. If Shu soldiers were ordered to pursue and kill Wei civilians, they would undoubtedly find it difficult to carry out the order. Only by defining the enemy as soldiers, and by demonstrating that Wei soldiers had entered Shu territory first, could the Shu soldiers' fighting spirit be galvanized, allowing them to give their all on the battlefield and pursue the enemy without hesitation.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
