Chapter 68 Let’s slowly settle these accounts…
Wen Xing tried his best to keep a calm expression and said to Jiao Lie, "Master, please go back first."
Jiao Lie stood up and bowed, "Then I'll go first. Thank you very much, sir." After saying that, he left.
Seeing Jiao Lie walk away, Xinghe asked Wen Xing, "What if he really opens the imperial tomb and finds that the body has been swapped?"
Wen Xing's eyes showed hesitation, but he quickly regained his composure and shook his head. "The body is over six months old, it must have decayed long ago."
Besides... he thought about it, Ning Wujie was a meticulous person, he might open the coffin for an autopsy, and he had taken "poison", the coroner should be able to find it out in order to conceal the truth.
Fortunately, the catalytic potion that Fu Wenxin gave Xinghe was also poisonous at that time. The conditions for poison testing in ancient times were simple, so it should not be possible to tell the difference.
Thinking of this, his eyes lit up slightly.
Instead of letting Ning Wujie break the dragon stone, it would be better to let him discover the secret passage. The corpses inside have been rotting for half a year anyway, so he can do whatever he wants to vent his anger.
Just don't let Ning Wujie do anything that would destroy his own empire.
The Dragon-Breaking Stone must never be smashed.
Moreover, keeping the passage he used to escape open would be a hidden danger, so it would be better to take this opportunity to deal with it all at once.
His eyes moved under his drooping eyelashes, and he said to Xinghe, "Send a message to Tingchaoyuan and tell them that I have something to ask of you..."
Xinghe leaned over and listened for a while before nodding his head in agreement.
At this moment, a servant in blue hurried in, holding a document in his hand. He bowed toward the curtain and said, "Sir, the Governor's Office has sent a messenger, saying that the Governor has important matters to discuss. Please come to the residence immediately."
Wen Xing didn't even raise his eyelids.
The Governor of Southern Yunnan is looking for him?
He only needed a moment's thought to guess what was going on, so he waved his hand and said lazily, "No."
The servant was a little embarrassed, "So we're going to go back like this?"
Xinghe snorted and said disdainfully, "Who dares to order our master around?"
He said to the attendant, "Tell them that our master lives in seclusion and never leaves Soseki Residence. If you want to see him, you should send your visiting card yourself."
The servant hesitated and glanced at the figure behind the veil. Seeing that the other party did not refute, he lowered his head and said, "Yes."
After saying this, he retreated.
The next morning, many people seeking to see him gathered outside Soseki's residence.
Suddenly, the sound of horse hooves clattered around the corner. A canopied carriage, escorted by elite guards, slowly approached. After the carriage stopped, a guard dismounted and strode quickly to the gatehouse, saying arrogantly, "The Governor of Southern Yunnan has arrived in person to discuss important matters with Mr. Xuanjian. Go and inform him immediately, and have Mr. Xuanjian come out to greet him."
The attendant bowed and said, "General, please forgive me. My master has a rule. If you want to see me, please submit a visiting card first. If you wish to see me, I will pass it on."
The guard shouted angrily, "How dare you! Do you know who is in the car? How dare you make our lord wait? Go and tell them immediately!"
The attendant still did not move.
Seeing that he was unmoved, the chief guard ran out of patience. "It seems your gentleman is unwilling to accept my toast. Come here!"
The bodyguards surrounded him in response.
Just when the situation was tense, a cold voice came from the carriage: "Stop!"
When the carriage curtain was lifted, the guards immediately turned around and bowed their heads in a gesture of respect.
A young man in a royal blue dragon-patterned uniform walked out with his back bent.
The guards shouted, "Your Highness!"
"Your Highness?" In the entire southern Yunnan, only Prince Xiang could be addressed as "Your Highness."
The onlookers were shocked and knelt down and kowtowed, not daring to look up again.
Another person came out of the carriage behind King Xiang, and the two got off the car one after the other.
As they walked, the King of Xiang rebuked, "Governor Gao, how many times have I told you? Courtesy to the wise and humble is the most important thing, and sincerity is the most important. Are you shouting and urging people like this, inviting them in, or arresting them?"
The Governor's face turned pale, and he suppressed his resentment. He followed behind and bowed, saying, "Your Highness is teaching me a lesson. It was me who was reckless."
Under everyone's astonished gaze, Prince Xiang walked straight to the front door, held up the visiting card, and bowed: "Thank you for your message. I respectfully request an audience with Mr. Xuanjian."
The attendant took the invitation and was stunned when Xinghe stepped out. "Our master said that the King of Xiang has great ambitions. Extraordinary undertakings must have extraordinary prices. What is your price for what you want?"
*
The cold wind of early winter blew up the fallen leaves in front of the imperial tomb.
Ning Wujie was wearing a black dragon-patterned uniform, his face covered with frost, and was standing in front of the Dragon-Breaking Stone in the imperial mausoleum.
All the officials, craftsmen and attendants in the imperial mausoleum, noticing the extremely ugly expression on the emperor's face, dared not breathe, and stood on both sides, holding their breath and lowering their heads.
"Open." Ning Wujie said coldly.
The Minister of Works tumbled out of the line and knelt on the ground, "Your Majesty, please understand! Once this Dragon-Severing Stone falls, it will merge with the mountain. There is no way to open it. It simply cannot be opened!"
Ning Wujie slowly turned his head, his eyes swept across the minister's pale face, and he said shockingly with a nonchalant tone: "Can't open it? Then use gunpowder to blow it open."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone suddenly turned pale and knelt on the ground in unison.
"Your Majesty, think twice!"
The Minister of Works broke out in a cold sweat. "This rock is a single block of granite, over ten feet thick and indestructible. The amount of gunpowder needed to blast it apart would be enough to collapse the imperial mausoleum! The mausoleum would be completely destroyed, and even death would be a way to redeem us!"
"Waste." Ning Wujie said coldly.
"If we can't open the imperial tomb, what's the point of waiting for you?"
He looked at the Dragon-Severing Stone and said lightly, "Why not kill them all and bury them with the late emperor?"
Everyone was horrified when they heard this, and some were even trembling with fear.
This new emperor has the power of life and death without hesitation.
If he says he wants to kill someone to be buried with him, then he will really kill!
Wang Jiang finally couldn't bear it any longer. He stepped out of the group and came to the front of the steps, saying solemnly, "Your Majesty, even if the late emperor had many faults, considering that he had shown you some kindness, I beg you to show some mercy and let him rest in peace!"
As he spoke, he lifted his robe, knelt on his knees, kowtowed three times to Ning Wujie, and said with tears in his eyes, "Your Majesty, please show mercy!"
As the Left Censor-in-Chief, commanding the censors, his words of advice were like throwing a stone into a lake, stirring up ripples. Immediately, more than a dozen censors stepped forward and kowtowed, "Your Majesty! Destroying the Dragon Stone is tantamount to destroying a mausoleum! This act will be cursed for eternity! The state is unstable, and rebellions are raging. If we break the Dragon Stone, we'll only end up burning ourselves!"
"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
Ning Wujie glanced at Wang Jiang coldly and spat out, "Idiot!"
He walked quickly forward, grabbed Wang Jiang's collar and lifted him up.
Wang Jiang was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat. He saw Ning Wujie standing close to him with a look of extreme horror on his face, and his eyes seemed to want to tear him into pieces.
He heard Ning Wujie say in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Your Majesty tampered with the mausoleum. Don't you want to know what he did? What if... he's not dead?"
Wang Jiang's pupils trembled.
I suddenly recalled what His Majesty said before he passed away: This is a trap.
Could it be...
His mind raced, and he suddenly timidly said, "So... breaking the Dragon Stone means... closing the net?"
Ning Wujie: ...
Although he didn't understand what was going on in Wang Jiang's mind, he nodded anyway.
Wang Jiang:!
Although he still didn't understand what the late emperor meant by the game, he felt that Ning Wujie was so smart that he couldn't be wrong.
Then his eyes became firm, "I understand."
Ning Wujie pulled the corner of his lips, and only after confirming from the other person's eyes that this idiot would not cause trouble again did he let him go.
Wang Jiang straightened his clothes, took two steps back, and bowed to Ning Wujie, saying, "I have no objection, but I will leave it to Your Majesty's judgment."
Censors:?!
What’s going on?!
Oh, they understood. Lord Wang was almost crushed to death by His Majesty just now! The one who was crushed to death earlier is still hanging at the Meridian Gate!
In this situation, saving life is the most important thing.
Seeing this, everyone dared not persuade him anymore. They all knelt on the ground and kept silent.
Ning Wujie's cold gaze swept over the Minister of Works, "Think of a way, even if it means blowing up the imperial mausoleum."
As soon as the words fell, the scene fell into a solemn silence.
The people kneeling on the ground were sweating profusely, and they all thought to themselves that their Majesty had really gone crazy!
Did he hate the late emperor to such an extent? Would he rather destroy his own kingdom than dig up his ancestral grave?
The Minister of Works' eyes widened in shock, then suddenly rolled their eyes and said with a quick wit: "Your Majesty! I have a plan!"
Ning Wujie said coldly, "Speak."
The Minister of Works shuddered and stammered, "Perhaps... perhaps we can use the 'chisel method'. Find a skilled stonemason to use a hydraulic diamond drill to chisel at the weak point. Perhaps... perhaps within a year or two... we can chisel out a gap..."
"One or two years?!" Ning Wujie sneered, "I'll give you three months, or I'll behead you."
The Minister of Works was shocked when he heard this and immediately fell down in fear. "Three, three months?!"
But at this moment, an old craftsman among the kneeling craftsmen hesitated for a moment, raised his hand slightly, and said, "I...maybe I have a way."
Ning Wujie narrowed his eyes slightly when he heard the words. He looked in the direction of the voice and took a look at the craftsman. "Come over here and tell me."
The old craftsman hunched over and took a few steps forward, kneeling in greeting. "Your Majesty, we can dig a tunnel through the rock formations in the shade of Lingshan Mountain to reach the underground palace, eliminating the need to cut through the Dragon Stone."
"Nonsense!" the Minister of Works retorted, "That's the method of tomb robbers! This is the royal mausoleum, how can you dig a hole yourself? How shameless! If you destroy the dragon vein, who will be held responsible?"
The officials echoed the sentiment, and the voices of rebuke were endless.
Ning Wujie remained silent, his gaze fixed on the old craftsman, sharp as if he could see through him. After a long moment, he slowly spoke, his voice unmistakable, "How long will it take you?"
The old craftsman bowed even lower: "If we have enough manpower and materials, and work day and night, a month will be enough."
Ning Wujie stared at the craftsman, his eyes full of scrutiny.
"Approved. This matter is now yours to take full responsibility. You will be responsible for all manpower and materials. No one else is allowed to interfere."
After saying this, he mounted his horse and rode away.
A group of guards followed on horseback.
The officials collapsed to the ground as if they had been pardoned.
Only Wang Jiang still looked worried, so, has this net... been closed?
*
That night, in the shade of the imperial tomb.
The old craftsman led several craftsmen, walking around the foot of the imperial mausoleum, stopping and starting, as if surveying the terrain, and finally stopped in front of an inconspicuous rockery.
"This is it." The old craftsman pointed to one of the huge stones. "Starting from here is the shortest distance to the tomb chamber."
A young craftsman hesitated and whispered, "Fifth Uncle, this... this is clearly..."
The old craftsman glanced over and interrupted him, his voice very low, "The higher-ups said that we should take this opportunity to transform the original passage into the shape we just dug. That way, the passage will be clear and no one will be suspicious anymore."
It can not only prevent the mad emperor from destroying the imperial tomb, but also destroy the evidence, killing two birds with one stone.
The young craftsman understood instantly, "I understand!"
*
Three days later, in Funing Palace.
Suixing whispered, "Master, they've chosen to begin construction on the rockery complex within the main gate. Three shifts are on duty, keeping a close watch. This is unusual."
Ning Wujie leaned back in the recliner that Wen Xing usually used, his eyes narrowed slightly, a cold glint of sarcasm flashing across his eyes, "As expected."
He couldn't find any clues among the craftsmen who built the imperial mausoleum in February last year, and the increased cost of building the mausoleum was all due to consumables.
Therefore, the people who made the move were originally from the Ministry of Industry, and they did it so cleanly that no clues were revealed.
That's why he made the shocking statement about breaking the dragon stone, otherwise the other party would not take the bait.
"Have you checked where they're working?"
Suixing said, "From a distance, it looks like a passageway. But I'm not sure if they just made one or if it was already there."
"Let's go." Ning Wujie stood up and said, "Let's go take a look."
At the rockery, several craftsmen were pretending to hammer on the rocks when they suddenly saw a young eunuch coming over with a food box. They immediately went to greet him vigilantly.
"Eunuch Zhang, they're cutting rocks here. It's dangerous. It's better not to get close."
The young eunuch said, "You have worked hard, I will serve you the food."
The craftsmen obviously knew the eunuch and didn't suspect anything. They just took the food box and thanked him repeatedly. One of them opened the box and exclaimed, "Why is there wine today?"
The young eunuch said, "His Majesty is concerned about this project, and he has given you some good wine and delicious food. Work hard, and you will be rewarded handsomely upon completion!"
The aroma of wine and food wafted out of the food boxes. After expressing their gratitude, several craftsmen took the food boxes and sat around to share the food.
A quarter of an hour later, several people felt dizzy and collapsed to the ground.
Ning Wujie walked out from the darkness, his eyes sweeping over the unconscious craftsman lying on the ground, "Don't kill him, or you'll alert the enemy."
"It's a knockout drug," Suixing whispered. "They're desperate. When they wake up, they'll just think they were drunk."
Ning Wujie said no more and walked straight towards the hole that had been dug. It had been cleverly camouflaged and looked as if it had just been dug.
He leaned over and got in without hesitation.
The shadow guards lit torches, allowing Ning Wujie to see the entire passage clearly.
His heart suddenly sank, then began beating wildly.
He could almost imagine how that person had passed through this passage and escaped from the imperial mausoleum.
Ning Wujie took a deep breath, suppressed his frantic heartbeat, and almost staggered as he walked quickly forward in the direction indicated by the light.
At the end of the passage was a massive stone wall. Ning Wujie's breathing was rapid, his hands groping along the cold, rough surface. Soon, his fingertips touched a tiny bump. Without hesitation, he pressed down hard.
“Boom—”
The heavy creak of machinery echoed within the confined space. The stone wall slowly slid open, revealing a spacious tomb chamber. In the center, the enormous imperial coffin rested quietly on a white marble platform.
Ning Wujie stared at the coffin, his feet almost nailed to the spot.
Suixing waved his hand, and several shadow guards came forward and carefully pried open the coffin lid with a prying knife.
As soon as the coffin lid was opened a crack, an indescribable smell of corruption gushed out, and everyone subconsciously covered their noses.
There was a rumbling sound, and the coffin lid was completely opened.
The shadow guards retreated several steps due to the stench. Even Suixing couldn't help but frown and almost didn't dare to look at the corpse in the coffin.
Only Ning Wujie stepped forward quickly, his eyes fixed on the coffin.
There lay a corpse wearing an imperial robe. The body had been severely decayed and was difficult to identify, with only the skeleton outlining the general outline.
Ning Wujie's gaze swept over the corpse, his face suddenly darkened, and a hint of extreme disappointment flashed across his eyes.
How is that possible?
Could it be that he was wrong?
"Xia Qi." Ning Wujie's voice was colder than the tomb.
Xia Qi followed his instructions and stepped forward, pulling out the autopsy tools from his bag. He adjusted the glass mirror and examined the corpse. After a while, he bowed to Ning Wujie and said, "Your Majesty, according to the medical records, the late emperor's finger bones were longer than those of an average person. Also, although the late emperor's shoulder bones were broad, the thickness of his bones was slightly thinner than that of an average man..."
Facing Ning Wujie's cold, warning gaze, Xia Qi didn't dare to say anything more and directly gave his conclusion: "This must be the late emperor."
Jupiter felt relieved upon hearing this.
He knew that their master was crazy and was determined to prove that the late emperor was not dead.
How could someone who had been lying in the mourning hall for half a month without breathing not be dead?
Now it’s okay, can you give up now?
Ning Wujie's pupils suddenly shrank, "Impossible!"
He grabbed Xia Qi's collar and said sternly, "The late emperor took poison. Go and test it!"
Xia Qi had no choice but to take out the silver needle and probe several parts of the corpse. Then he carefully examined the needle tip and showed it to Ning Wujie: "Your Majesty, look, the needle tip is green, it is..."
Ning Wujie pushed Xia Qi away and said, "Get out of here!"
He supported the coffin with both hands, his fingertips exerted incredible strength, and his eyes were red as he stared at the corpse in the coffin.
No...this is impossible!
If it was His Majesty lying here, then why did he carve a passage out? What was his purpose?!
Suixing hurriedly advised, "Master, the late emperor may not have faked his death. Perhaps that passage has other uses? Why don't we capture those craftsmen and interrogate them?"
Ning Wujie remained silent and did not answer, only his cold eyes were fixed on the coffin, and his eyes were full of frightening paranoia and madness.
Suddenly, his gaze wandered somewhere and froze, and he suddenly reached out and grabbed the wrist bone of the corpse.
His fingertips carefully stroked every inch of the bones, and his fingertips caressed the wrist. For a moment, the eyes that were originally dead suddenly lit up with a prairie fire.
His voice was low and hoarse, churning with ecstasy: "This is not him."
Jupiter:?
Xia Qi?!
Xia Qi came closer, unconvinced, and examined it carefully again, "Your Majesty, please forgive my stupidity, this..."
That's clearly it.
He turned his head to look at Ning Wujie in confusion again.
But he heard a very light sneer suddenly escape from Ning Wujie's throat. There was no warmth in that laugh, only a firm, almost crazy certainty: "This is not him."
Suixing and Xia Qi looked at each other.
Is their master crazy and unwilling to believe the truth?
Ning Wujie supported his elbows on the edge of the coffin, slowly leaned down, rested his forehead on the back of his hands, and his whole body trembled violently and uncontrollably.
A very low and broken sound came from his throat, making it impossible to tell whether he was crying or laughing.
However, the hot tears burst out without warning, and fell on the white jade table in big drops, leaving dark water marks.
That liar!
His chest heaved violently as he was enveloped by both violent rage and twisted ecstasy. The intertwining of these two extreme emotions almost tore his soul into pieces.
His fists tightened inch by inch, revealing the white joints and oozing out traces of blood.
This abominable tyrant! He had repeatedly deceived and cheated him, toyed with him in the palm of his hand, and finally walked away, still wanting him to guard the country for this liar!
The low sobs gradually changed in tone, turning into waves of uncontrollable laughter that came from deep in the chest.
The laughter was hoarse and broken, filled with madness, and echoed in the silent tomb, making people shudder.
The shadow guards looked at each other, thinking that their master, who was crying and laughing at the same time, might have gone crazy.
After a long time, Ning Wujie closed his eyes deeply, and the last tear was fanned to the ground by his eyelashes, blooming into a huge dark flower.
When he opened his eyes again, a cold light flashed in his scarlet eyes.
Just be alive.
Let’s slowly calculate these accounts!
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The author has something to say: Oh yeah~ He runs away, he chases, he can't fly away even if he has wings~ Sorry, I'm a local dog, I just like this
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