"Has Li Zheng lost his mind?" Hua Cai, who was engrossed in cutting fabric, stared in disbelief at Shi Zhong, who had come to deliver the message.
His appearance in Duxin City at this time is like he thinks he's lived too long and is afraid that Yue Chen and his men won't find him.
"You can't blame him for that, it's just that Yue Chen is too wicked." Shi Zhong suppressed a laugh.
Hua Cai looked puzzled.
"You wouldn't believe it, that kid Yue Chen had the innkeeper treat that old eunuch to the best food and drinks, going to such lengths. He even made respectful nods and gestures of obedience in a corner where the old eunuch couldn't see. In just two days, the old eunuch looked like he'd gained weight, and the wrinkles on his face had lessened considerably." Shi Zhong chuckled mischievously. "When Li Zheng's men arrived, they couldn't get close to the old eunuch no matter what they did. Seeing the god-like life he was living every day, Li Zheng, who had traveled all this way, felt completely resentful."
"You guys—you really are too wicked." Hua Cai was both amused and exasperated.
She instructed Yue Chen to make sure De Fu had a comfortable life recently, but she didn't say she would add so many scenes. Unexpectedly, this kid's meddling caused Li Zheng to lose control ahead of schedule.
That's right. No matter who travels all the way here with great difficulty, they not only can't find the person they're supposed to meet, but they also end up with nowhere to stay.
Meanwhile, the people he sent out to scout the area were living like gods here. No wonder he couldn't feel at peace with that.
Upon receiving a report from his secret guards that Defu was living a very comfortable life in the new city, had not gone out to gather intelligence, and that the people in the inn were treating him with unusual respect, Li Zheng's last bit of hesitation about entering the city vanished, replaced by a surge of anger.
Since the operation went so smoothly, why ignore his coded message?
Whether a person is truly relaxed or merely pretending, Li Zheng, a man who grew up in the palace and was skilled in intrigue, knew better than anyone. After listening to the reports from his secret guards and observing the situation firsthand, he indeed saw that the old eunuch was living an exceptionally comfortable life. This inexplicably enraged him, and he immediately led more than ten secret guards who had accompanied him into the city discreetly.
Entering the city meant falling right into Yue Chen's spies' clutches. Before the dozen or so people had even finished lining up to enter, news of Li Zheng's entry into the new city had already spread.
"Finally, we've gathered three important characters." Hua Cai tossed aside the tattered strips of cloth in her hand and strode outside: "Prepare the horses, Duxin City."
To facilitate resupply, the Yue Kingdom camp was located not far from the new capital city. Traveling at full speed, Hua Cai arrived in the new capital city in just a quarter of an hour.
They rushed to the inn where Defu, Lizheng, and the others were trapped. As soon as Hua Cai entered, someone greeted her. Hua Cai recognized the person as the innkeeper.
"General, Ziyun Pavilion upstairs." As the two brushed past each other, a faint voice rang out.
Hua Cai didn't stop walking, her expression unchanged, and she went up to the second floor as if she knew the way well, heading straight for the room with the wooden plaque "Ziyun Pavilion" hanging on it.
Before she even reached the door, Hua Cai could already vaguely hear a voice coming from inside: "This subordinate is unaware; I have not been able to find out any news about the Princess Consort of Xiaoyao."
The voice was high-pitched and unpleasant, exactly the voice of Defu that Huacai remembered.
Hua Cai didn't hear what Li Zheng said, perhaps because he deliberately lowered his voice, but that didn't affect her plan. She strode to the door and kicked it open without stopping.
The door was kicked open, slamming against the wall with a loud bang, startling the group of people inside.
"Who!" Li Zheng's furious voice rang out, and instantly, more than a dozen masked men in black rushed out of the room and surrounded Hua Cai.
Hua Cai looked at the men surrounding her with murderous intent and couldn't help but feel annoyed: "Li Zheng, are you stupid? You brought more than a dozen bodyguards and didn't even bother to disguise yourself. Have you ever seen a normal person dressed like this?"
She finally understood why Yue Chen's men were able to obtain information about Li Zheng and the others in such a short time, and even count how many bodyguards they brought. At first, she thought that Yue Chen had planted a spy next to Li Zheng, but now she realized that there was no need for such a high-level role as a spy. Anyone with eyesight and the ability to count would know who he brought.
"It's you!" As he spoke, Li Zheng also walked out of the room and met Hua Cai's mocking face. He was immediately shocked: "You, are you a human or a ghost?"
That's such a cliché.
"As expected of brothers, even the questions they asked each other when they first met were almost exactly the same." Hua Cai clapped his hands and chuckled: "What, you only realized it was me now? I thought that my dear Emperor would have recognized me the moment he heard my voice."
At the same time, Defu, who had followed Li Zheng out, collapsed to the ground, his face ashen, his eyes rolling back as if he could faint at any moment.
He personally administered the blood-dissolving powder back then, and no one was more convinced than him that Jin Baozhu was dead.
But who is standing before me now?
Jin Baozhu has come to claim my life.
Defu had only this one thought left in his mind.
Hua Cai looked at the incredibly interesting expression on Li Zheng's face and laughed heartily: "I was so naive and ignorant back then, how could I have been so blind to give my heart to someone like you?"
Li Zheng's face alternated between pale and flushed as he stared at Hua Cai's face, as if trying to confirm something. He kept retreating, hiding behind layer upon layer of guards, until his complexion improved slightly.
"As expected, emperors are most afraid of death, or is it you, Li Zheng, who are like this?" Hua Cai chuckled. "Li Zheng, Li Zheng, I always thought that the reason you could sit on the throne of Li Kingdom for so long was not only because of the help of my Jin family, but also because your only brother was a good-for-nothing with no ambition. But I was wrong. The most important thing is that you are so lucky."
As they were talking, Li Zheng had already retreated to the rear of everyone. He seemed to finally feel confident, and then looked at Hua Cai and said nothing but killing: "Leave no survivors. Cut off her head and let's see if she can live."
Li Zheng looked at Hua Cai with a gloomy gaze, as if he were looking at a corpse.
The royal guards and assassins trained by the imperial family have always been emotionless killing machines, obeying only the emperor's orders.
At Li Zheng's command, the cold gazes of more than ten guards fixed on Hua Cai instantly changed. They raised their daggers slightly and rushed towards her.
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