Upon hearing this, Thirteenth Master disregarded everything else and rushed towards the haystack with Fourth Master. Meanwhile, the men in black, unaware of their intentions, were stunned to find themselves suddenly doused with alcohol. Then, a tinderbox was thrown at them, and bright flames began to engulf the four or five men. The men in black tried to extinguish the fire, but it seemed impossible; the flames quickly engulfed them, forcing them into a gruesome and agonizing dance.
Several men in black who were fighting the guards have been killed, and of course, some guards have also died heroically.
Su Peisheng and Li Wei were about to throw fire on the others when they saw the men in black, whose clothes were on fire, rushing towards Fourth Master and Thirteenth Master as if in retaliation. This startled them.
Fourth Master and Thirteenth Master raised their swords and, seeing the Fire Man rushing towards them, mercilessly killed him.
The men entangled with the guards clearly intended to attack the Fourth Prince and the Thirteenth Prince, but the guards were not about to let them go. Gradually, the men in black were killed one by one, until only two remained, still fighting with the five guards.
"Leave them alive!" Fourth Master and Thirteenth Master each had minor injuries, but they were no longer seriously injured.
Following the Fourth Master's orders, the guards refrained from using lethal attacks, which gave the two men in black a chance to retaliate.
"Fourth Brother, these people are fighting like they don't care about their lives. I don't think it will be easy to capture them alive." Thirteen watched as five guards couldn't gain the upper hand against two people, because those two were simply reckless. The guards, probably wanting to leave them alive, could only resist their attacks.
"Looks like they're hired assassins. Who have we gotten ourselves into? They want to kill us!" Fourth Master said with a dark face.
"If that doesn't work, break your arm!" Fourth Master shouted.
Having received their orders, the guards no longer hesitated and began to unleash deadly attacks, though they still avoided vital points. Two men in black were no match for five.
One man was stabbed through the shoulder blade and screamed in pain. The other man's arm was also slashed, and in the end, the two had no choice but to surrender.
The guards dared not put their knives to their necks, fearing they would commit suicide by cutting their own throats; instead, they simply tied their hands behind their backs.
Fourth Master and Thirteenth Master walked up to the last remaining man in black, and Li Wei and Su Peisheng followed.
Thirteen said to them, "Who sent you? If you tell me, I may spare your lives."
But the two of them seemed not to hear at all. Thirteen asked again, and they still had the same reaction.
"Pry open their mouths and see!" Fourth Master said.
When the guards pried open the men's mouths, they were horrified to find that their tongues had been cut off.
"No wonder they didn't make a sound, they're all mute," the Thirteenth Master said in a trembling voice.
"It seems they were trained from a very young age, at least for more than five years." Fourth Master looked at the two people, who were only seventeen or eighteen years old.
"Sir, something seems off about them!" Su Peisheng suddenly shouted.
"Oh no, we should have gotten the poison out of their teeth earlier. It looks like they bit into something poisoned." Thirteen quickly pinched one of them on the cheekbone, but it was too late.
"Forget it, they won't tell, and they can't tell anyway," Fourth Master said helplessly, looking at the bright red blood flowing from the corners of the two men in black's mouths.
"Fourth Brother, who on earth has the audacity to send assassins to kill two princes of the current dynasty? We must report this to Father Emperor immediately!" Thirteen said excitedly.
“What’s the use of just saying we have a clue? These people are all dead, and they’re all mute. I’m sure we can’t find out who they are. They were all trained assassins from childhood, with no background whatsoever. We can’t find any clues at all.” Blood began to seep from Fourth Master’s arm.
"Master, your arm is injured. Let me bandage it for you." Su Peisheng was very anxious.
After the Fourth Prince, the Thirteenth Prince, and several wounded guards had their wounds treated, the group packed their belongings and prepared to leave. Two horses lay on the ground, riddled with arrows, a gruesome sight. Several charred corpses emitted the stench of human flesh mixed with the smell of blood, a truly nauseating odor.
"The horses are nowhere to be found; those horses have long since disappeared without a trace," Thirteen said.
"We'll only take the essentials; we don't need any luggage. We'll have to walk," Fourth Master said.
After they had packed up the necessary documents, silver, and food, the clothes and utensils in the two carts had to be thrown away.
The group disappeared into the mountains and forests.
Night fell quickly, and the group had no choice but to spend the night in the pitch-black forest.
The guards gathered branches and started a fire. Su Peisheng put their rations and meat into a pot and cooked it over the fire.
"Bringing the pot along really came in handy," Li Wei joked. He had to admit he admired Su Peisheng; despite being a man—no, a eunuch—he was more meticulous than a woman.
"Go, have some flatbread and water and eat it yourself. This is what I cooked for Fourth Master and Thirteenth Master." Su Peisheng glanced at Li Wei. After spending some time together, Su Peisheng realized that although Li Wei was a scholar, his personality was not so serious.
"You're stingy, how about yours, Eunuch Su?" Li Wei asked jokingly.
"Only after serving the master his meal can we servants use our food," Su Peisheng said in a hoarse voice, his tone serious.
The Fourth Prince and the Thirteenth Prince stood under a big tree talking, ignoring their conversation.
"Fourth Brother, who do you think it is this time? Could it be one of the people we investigated in Yangzhou?" Thirteen asked.
"We need to investigate. It seems they've offended someone with a very high status this time. Otherwise, those corrupt officials wouldn't dare to raise assassins to kill a prince." The Fourth Prince's eyes were as deep as stars hidden in his black robes, dazzling yet distant.
"This matter still needs to be reported to Father Emperor. Is that man surnamed Fan reliable?" Thirteen asked.
"He serves as a councilor in the Jiangsu-Anhui military camp and also holds military power. Fan Zhongqi was trained by Nian Gengyao, so he's reliable," Fourth Master said.
"General Nian Gengyao of Sichuan and Shaanxi?" This was the first time the thirteenth prince had heard this name from the fourth prince. In the past two years, the Nian family had become quite successful in Sichuan, and even Emperor Kangxi had issued an imperial edict to bestow honors upon them.
"This man is a rare and capable general, and he's efficient and gets things done," Fourth Master said meaningfully. He detested forming cliques and engaging in favoritism more than anything. Yet, his private relationship with Nian Gengyao was indeed very good. Few people knew this, and this was the first time Thirteenth Master had ever heard this name from Fourth Master.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
