Chapter 139: Intent to Kill

After Ceng Hai departed, a figure emerged from the darkness of the alley, glanced at the departing back, then fixed his gaze on the corpse of Li Zhu before him.

After a moment's thought, he lifted the body and placed it in a slightly conspicuous spot at the alley entrance.

Then, with a shift of his form, he turned and headed toward the outskirts of the Imperial Capital.

While monitoring Ceng Hai, he had secretly resolved many troubles for him; otherwise, the other might not have been able to leave the Tianjin Guard Headquarters.

Now that his mission is complete, it is time to follow the Commander, my lord.

Moreover, he knew very well that Shangyang City would likely not remain peaceful in the coming days.

The rooster crowed to herald dawn; the sky was just beginning to lighten.

Having lain on his side on the bed almost all night without sleep, resting for less than half a shichen, the Right Chancellor Ji Song slowly opened his eyes.

Seeing this, the maid who had been attending him at all times immediately stepped forward cautiously and helped him sit up.

Ji Song's aged face was filled with exhaustion, and his clouded eyes held little light; the recent deaths of his two daughters had already plunged him into deep grief.

"Someone come."

He spoke in a hoarse voice; soon, a middle-aged man dressed as a steward hurried in from outside the door, bowed deeply, and said:

"Your Excellency, what orders do you have for this servant?"

"Has the Second Imperial Prince found Zhu'er yet?"

"Reporting to Your Excellency, no news has arrived yet," the steward said, shaking his head gently.

Upon hearing this, Ji Song's graying brows knitted tightly, and his expression gradually grew unpleasant.

Of course, he was not blaming the Second Imperial Prince Li Que for lack of effort; rather, he knew well that as long as Li Zhu remained unfound, the longer time dragged on, the more unpredictable the situation would become.

"Prepare a carriage; this old man must go personally to the Second Imperial Prince's residence."

Ji Song rose from the bed, giving orders to the steward while signaling the maid to help him change clothes.

Before long, Ji Song, dressed in a plain robe, was supported by servants as he walked out of the main gate of the Third Imperial Prince's residence.

Just then, a magnificent carriage came speeding down the distant street and then slowed to a stop.

The Second Imperial Prince Li Que lifted the carriage curtain, looked at Ji Song, who was about to be helped onto a horse by servants, and asked in confusion:

"Right Chancellor, where are you headed?"

Upon hearing this, Ji Song slowly waved his hand, signaling the servants beside him to stop; then he turned, bowed to Li Que with clasped hands, and said:

"This old minister is going to see Your Highness."

"Is it regarding the matter of the Third Brother?"

Li Que stepped down from the carriage using a servant's back as a step, hurried over to Ji Song's side, and said:

"Right Chancellor, rest assured; at the Tianjin Guard Headquarters, I have people watching at all times. Moreover, according to our informants, the son of the Concubine Jing was no longer within the Tianjin Guard Headquarters yesterday."

"It can almost be confirmed that the other must be hiding in that carriage leaving the city. Additionally, I have dispatched an extremely powerful martial arts expert to go out of the city and handle this matter; I believe good news will return before the day ends."

Upon hearing this, Ji Song fell silent and pondered for a moment; seeing Li Que's confident demeanor, he nodded slightly and bowed with clasped hands, saying:

"Your Highness has taken great trouble; this old minister is deeply grateful."

Seeing this, Li Que quickly reached out to support Ji Que with a gesture, saying:

"Your words are too heavy, Right Chancellor. Once the Third Brother returns safely, we will join forces to capture the murderer and surely avenge the Noble Consort."

As he spoke, a fierce expression flashed across his face, and he said:

"As for the son of Concubine Jing, Right Chancellor need not worry; I will ensure he receives his due fate."

Ji Song's eyes flickered; he bowed again and said solemnly:

"Your Highness's kindness, this old minister will surely keep in mind."

Li Que narrowed his eyes and returned the bow with clasped hands in a very solemn manner:

"Your Highness's words are enough!"

Ji Song looked up and met his gaze; neither said anything more, yet the meaning was clear without words, understood by both.

The Left and Right Chancellors were Emperor Yuanwu's trusted confidants; at the same time, Emperor Yuanwu had explicitly forbidden these two chancellors, who wielded overwhelming power in the court, from participating in the competition among the Imperial Princes.

Therefore, Ji Song dared not disobey even slightly on this matter.

However, his personal bias was unavoidable; sometimes, a single careless remark he made before Emperor Yuanwu could, without form, influence the fate of one of the Imperial Princes.

"Your Highness has come here early in the morning and surely has not yet had breakfast; if Your Highness does not mind, please join this old minister for a meal."

Ji Song spoke slowly; Li Que immediately nodded without hesitation:

"The Right Chancellor's invitation is more than welcome."

As he spoke, he turned and gave an order to his subordinates, then prepared to enter the residence with Ji Song.

However, by now the sky had grown brighter; in an unintentional glance from the corner of his eye, he saw a human figure lying on the ground near the alley entrance not far in front of the Third Imperial Prince's residence, looking extremely out of place on the otherwise empty street.

"Where did this vagrant drunkard come from? Dying in front of an Imperial Prince's residence is terribly inauspicious."

Li Que, who had been in a good mood, frowned upon seeing this; Ji Song followed his gaze, glanced over, then immediately ordered those beside him:

"Send someone to deal with it."

Having said this, he continued to invite Li Que into the residence for a meal.

At that moment, guards from the residence hurried toward the alley to deal with the vagrant drunkard Li Que had mentioned.

However, soon, a shrill cry of alarm arose on the empty morning street.

Then, a guard stumbled back in panic, rushing to catch up with Ji Song and Li Que, who had not yet entered the residence too far.

"Your... Excellency, Your Highness... something has happened!"

The guard's face was deathly pale, and his teeth chattered as he spoke.

Ji Song suddenly stopped, turned to look at the other, and a very bad feeling surged in his heart:

"What did you say?"

Hearing this, the guard dropped to his knees with a thud, trembling as he pointed a finger toward the narrow alley outside the mansion gate, saying:

"The body lying there... is the Third Imperial Prince's corpse."

At these words, the aged and gray-haired Ji Song and Li Que were both stunned.

Li Que's expression instantly changed drastically; he stepped forward, grabbed the guard by the collar, and roared:

"How is that possible?"

The guard, already terrified out of his wits, now just shook his head violently with a pale face, crying out in fear:

"I confirmed it several times; it is indeed the Third Imperial Prince..."

At the same time, the hunchbacked Ji Song, not waiting for the guard to finish, stumbled forward, rushing toward the mansion gate.

The servants nearby, seeing this, hurried to follow and offer support, but he waved his hand heavily, knocking them all away.

Li Que looked up at Ji Song's figure; for a moment, the expression on his face kept shifting.

Then, he suddenly flung the guard in his hand away; the guard crashed into the courtyard wall beside him, cracking the wall, then fell to the ground, rolling several times before fainting.

Li Que didn't even glance back; he immediately hurried to follow Ji Song.

Not long later, before the empty alley entrance.

Ji Song stood hunched and dazed, staring blankly at the pale, cold corpse of Li Zhu before him; the whole man resembled a clay statue devoid of any life.

Around them, a crowd of guards and servants from the mansion knelt, each one silent as a winter cicada.

The only one standing was the Second Imperial Prince, Li Que; at this moment, his face was extremely ugly, his eyes filled with disbelief, shock, and anger.

Originally, he thought Li Zhu was still in Li Musheng's hands, yet the corpse now lay cold before his eyes.

He had even just now, before Ji Song, solemnly promised that Li Zhu would return soon.

However, the slap in the face came so quickly, so unexpectedly!

"Who is it? How dare they? How dare they attack an Imperial Prince in Shangyang City!"

Li Que roared, his face dark and gloomy.

Then, he slowly squatted down before Li Zhu's corpse, calling out with red-rimmed eyes:

"Third Brother, Third Brother..."

Ji Song, standing nearby, said nothing; only turbid tears slowly flowed from the corners of his wrinkled eyes; besides that, his face was frighteningly calm.

"Your Highness, please order a funeral in the palace; issue an order to seal off Shangyang City. From this moment on, no one may enter or leave the capital until the murderer of Zhu'er is found!"

Ji Song spoke in a voice without any fluctuation; he did not look at Li Que, nor did he care whether the other's sorrow at this moment was genuine or feigned.

An Imperial Prince was dead; his grandson was dead; the only son of his deceased daughter was dead!

The only thing he wanted to do at this moment was revenge; to make everyone involved in this perish with him!

At this time, Li Que, his face streaked with tears, lifted his head and looked at Ji Song standing nearby, saying:

"Right Prime Minister, please grieve with restraint. As for those who dared to kill my Third Brother, I will surely flay them a thousand cuts."

Having said this, Li Que suddenly stood up, swept his cold gaze over the surrounding crowd, and began issuing orders continuously.

Watching Li Que send messengers with various messages to all parts of the capital, Ji Song slowly turned around, looking toward the direction of the Tianjin Guard's main headquarters.

In his turbid eyes, at this moment, was full of chilling killing intent; he muttered to himself:

"Fu Qiwen, Li Musheng, this old man will make you die without a place to be buried!"

Although Ji Song spoke lightly, Li Que could naturally still hear it.

For a moment, he frowned and looked at Ji Song, saying:

"We currently have no direct evidence to prove..."

However, before Li Que could finish, Ji Song suddenly interrupted him, saying imperiously:

"All signs indicate that Zhu'er's death must be related to them, and this old man does not need evidence to make them die!"

Having said this, Ji Song's hunched body finally moved; then he bent down, picked up the corpse of Li Zhu lying on the ground, said not another word, and walked toward the mansion.

Li Que's expression changed slightly; he watched the other's seemingly aged body, like a dying candle in the wind, yet it could steadily carry the burly corpse of Li Zhu forward.

Within that ancient body, which originally needed support just to walk, burst forth strength that was hard to believe.

It was hard to say whether this was the power of Ji Song's hatred or his grief in his heart.

The Great Liang Imperial Palace, Fengyi Palace.

The Great Liang Wang Hou, dressed in a magnificent purple robe and wearing a brilliant jade crown, sat nobly on a gold-inlaid, jade-embedded armchair.

Holding a delicate porcelain cup in her hand, she glanced at the Chief Eunuch of the Imperial Rituals Bureau who had suddenly come to pay homage, slightly furrowing her brows and saying displeasedly:

"Li Tianyi, there has been no progress in the matter of Noble Consort Ji's murder. Why haven't you gone to arrest the murderer, yet come to my palace? I have no ability to help you catch the murderer."

Speaking thus, she slowly brought the porcelain cup closer to her lips, preparing to drink the tea.

At this moment, Li Tianyi, dressed in a golden python robe with a lean face, clasped his hands and bowed, his expression solemn, saying:

"The Third Imperial Prince, Li Zhu, is dead."

At these words, Wang Hou was stunned; the porcelain cup in her hand trembled violently; immediately, she looked sharply at Li Tianyi, asking in shock and suspicion:

"What did you say?"

"The Second Imperial Prince just sent an urgent verbal message to the palace, stating that the Third Imperial Prince was murdered and his body thrown onto the street in front of his own mansion. This servant just learned of this matter and came immediately to report to Your Majesty."

Li Tianyi, with his white eyebrows tightly furrowed, answered slowly.

Hearing this, Wang Hou's expression was momentarily dazed; then she stood up from the armchair, and her face instantly became extremely ugly:

"Do you know who the murderer is?"

Li Tianyi shook his head and said:

"Not yet, but according to what this servant knows, it seems related to the Tianjin Guard."

At these words, Wang Hou frowned, but she did not ask further; instead, she thought seriously for a moment, her face changing rapidly.

She immediately summoned attendants to arrange all matters concerning Li Zhu's death, while issuing several imperial edicts from the palace to seal off Shangyang City and order all government departments to spare no effort in capturing the murderer.

After completing all this, the Wang Hou turned her gaze once more to Li Tianyi, who had never left her side, and murmured thoughtfully:

"First, Consort Ji died inexplicably within the palace; now her son, Li Zhu, has been murdered. What enemy have they provoked?"

As she spoke, she rubbed her temples and said:

"And these events have occurred precisely while Your Majesty is in seclusion. If I fail to handle this matter properly, and Your Majesty holds me accountable, I shall suffer undeserved calamity."

Li Tianyi lowered his gaze, pretending not to hear the Wang Hou's complaints, and spoke slowly:

"A highly concealed rumor has emerged from the case of the Marquis Cangyuan Hou Fu: Consort Ji once conspired with the Marquis Cangyuan Hou Fu to kill people and cultivate her cultivation. Her death is likely connected to this."

Upon hearing this, the Wang Hou lifted her eyes to him, then suddenly narrowed them and said:

"Consort Ji's appearance reverting to youth was already unnatural; her killing to cultivate is likely true—but that is not where your focus should lie."

Then her expression darkened, her gaze turning stern:

"No matter the motive behind the murderer's killings, the fact that he slipped silently into the imperial palace and killed a consort—surely you understand what this implies."

At this, the Wang Hou's voice turned utterly icy:

"It means that, to this man, every person within the Da Li Imperial Palace is fish on a chopping block—he may slaughter them at will, and even I, if he wishes, he could take my life at any moment."

"If you cannot find him, not only I, but every soul within the Da Li Imperial Palace will be unable to sleep or eat in peace!"

Hearing this, Li Tianyi said nothing. After a moment, he gave a slight nod and said:

"Your Majesty, rest assured—I have already dispatched elite warriors to reinforce palace security, and I will spare no effort to apprehend the murderer."

As he spoke, he lifted his eyes slightly toward the Wang Hou and said:

"What I wish to say is, since Consort Ji's death stems from this killing-to-cultivate cause, perhaps the death of the Third Imperial Prince is the same."

"Whether killing a consort or killing an Imperial Prince, neither is an act any ordinary person would dare commit. I believe the one who killed the Third Imperial Prince may well be the same as the one who killed Consort Ji."

"Now that there is still no lead in Consort Ji's murder, perhaps we should shift the focus of the investigation to the Third Imperial Prince's death—this case may become our breakthrough in uncovering the murderer."

(End of Chapter)