Chapter 129: Strike East, Hit West

At the northern city gate, the usual bustling crowd of civilians was now completely gone.

Everyone knew a band of robbers planned to storm the capital through this gate.

As for the challenge issued to the Imperial Guard and Feathered Forest Commander, rumors had reached his ears, but no one believed them.

In the eyes of the forest bandits, they were heroic outlaws who feasted on meat, drank heavily, and divided gold and silver by the bushel.

But to most people, they were merely thieves.

They didn't produce anything—how could their wine, meat, and silver magically appear?

Chu Danqing never went to the scene; he simply waited behind the lines for news.

"Report~"

Around ten in the morning, the voice of a mid-level officer from the Imperial Guard and Feathered Forest shattered Chu Danqing's calm.

"Over twenty bandits eliminated at the northern gate; their leader, Dong Mang, has been beheaded and displayed!" the officer said upon seeing Chu Danqing.

Dong Mang was the River-Turning Dragon King who had challenged Chu Danqing.

The Secret Investigation Office had already dug up every detail about him.

"Only twenty-some?" Chu Danqing wasn't surprised by the River-Turning Dragon King's death, but he couldn't believe the number.

These were remnants of Mount Pingdou and Li Wanwu's adopted kin.

He didn't deny there might be internal conflicts among them.

But the number couldn't possibly be this low.

In recent days, the vanguard operatives who had infiltrated the capital totaled nearly a hundred.

Many had even dared to attempt assassinating him.

Yet the main force amounted to so few—this was far too anticlimactic.

"If the northern gate challenge was a decoy, then who was their real target?" Chu Danqing immediately ruled himself out.

He was surrounded by heavy troops; trying to kill him was no different from suicide.

In this trial world, forest bandits stood no chance against organized armies.

Otherwise, why resort to decapitation strikes?

"I must see the Emperor," Chu Danqing rose at once.

Aside from himself, it could only be the young Emperor.

If it were only forest bandits, their target would surely be Chu Danqing—the man pushing hardest for their extermination.

But Li Wanwu's adopted kin were involved too.

These people didn't just hate Chu Danqing—his predecessor, Emperor Taichang, had slaughtered their entire families, which is why Li Wanwu took them in.

These individuals had been carefully cultivated by Li Wanwu and understood politically that Chu Danqing had been using control over the young Emperor to drive the anti-bandit campaign.

Killing the young Emperor would sever Chu Danqing's legal authority.

It could even allow them to hold him hostage as leverage.

No sooner had Chu Danqing spoken than a violent clamor erupted.

"Yangqi Palace!" Chu Danqing instantly pinpointed the source and led his men there at once.

Upon arrival, over a dozen corpses of Imperial Guard and Feathered Forest soldiers littered the palace grounds—clear signs of battle.

They were killed because they were outnumbered and faced elite opponents.

"You're not slow, Commander Chu," said a pale, clean-shaven youth in a blue robe, surrounded by several guards.

Another burly man held the young Emperor hostage, while behind them, nearly a hundred capable forest bandits surrounded a group of ministers.

Chu Danqing scanned the scene; recognizing key features, he identified them all as notorious figures from the forest underworld.

"You're Qingyi Ke, Kui Yun, correct?" Chu Danqing said. "Release the Emperor, and we can talk."

Kui Yun ignored him entirely, continuing on his own: "Ninety men entered Yangqi Palace as if it were empty."

"Commander Chu, do you think the Imperial Guard and the Secret Investigation Office are useless?"

Then he answered himself.

"Of course not. That means someone high-ranking must have cooperated—only then could we move so smoothly."

Kui Yun's gaze turned to the young Emperor. "Isn't that right, Your Majesty?"

His words were pure provocation.

The reason was simple: he didn't know if his plan would succeed.

Even if it failed, he could sow discord between Chu Danqing and the Emperor.

There's a world of difference between saying something and leaving it unsaid.

Chu Danqing's expression didn't change—he'd already known. What else could surprise him?

The young Emperor's face turned grim; when he looked at Chu Danqing, his eyes darted away.

He was still too young.

"Release the Emperor, and we can negotiate any terms," Chu Danqing pressed on.

Kui Yun smiled. "What if I demand your life, Commander Chu?"

"Would you be willing to negotiate that?"

Chu Danqing didn't hesitate. "Of course. But your price must be worth my life."

Negotiating didn't mean he had to accept.

Besides, if he died, they'd never release the Emperor.

Kui Yun's eyes darkened with seriousness.

Chu Danqing dared say this publicly because he meant to carry it out.

Otherwise, he'd humiliate himself—how could he ever stand in court again?

"Very well. Then I—" Kui Yun began, ready to order Chu Danqing to kill himself.

But before he finished, an unexpected change erupted.

A dark shadow suddenly emerged from the shadow of the burly man holding the Emperor.

It slipped past, piercing his arm; in pain, the man instinctively shielded the Emperor, and the shadow seized him, yanking him free from the captor's grip.

As the captor reacted to reclaim him, a crossbow bolt pierced his outstretched hand.

Hidden by the crossbowmen, the Heart Demon swiftly carried the Emperor back behind Chu Danqing.

Da Bao and Zhan Ji Hu moved simultaneously; the remaining Imperial Guard, Feathered Forest, and Secret Investigation Office troops launched their attack the moment the Emperor was rescued.

Besides the crossbowmen and the Unicorn Dragon, Chu Danqing had plenty of guards stationed nearby.

As for the captured ministers, they were simply unlucky.

The whole sequence happened too fast; Kui Yun could only hold his ground using the palace's terrain.

"Your Majesty, these bandits are faithless and dishonorable—they must be exterminated," Chu Danqing said.

The young Emperor stared at the bandits retreating into Yangqi Palace; his fury slowly cooled.

He'd intended to use this opportunity to undermine Chu Danqing and reclaim some power.

Instead, he'd been outmaneuvered by Kui Yun.

Not only had his plan failed, but his prestige was shattered and many of his supporters lost.

Still, he could endure. He feigned ignorance and said, "Commander Chu is right."

"Your Majesty, you wouldn't want your Yangqi Palace stained with the blood of your ministers, would you?" Kui Yun's voice echoed from within the palace.

"We've lost. We ask for little." Kui Yun continued shouting. "Let Commander Chu grant us safe passage."

"From now on, we abandon the forest, vanish into obscurity, forever."

Chu Danqing said nothing, his gaze fixed on the young Emperor—waiting for his decision.

The young Emperor was torn.

If he agreed, his authority would be further weakened by yielding to bandits.

If he refused, he'd lose even more power—his influence would plunge to its lowest point.

He'd never regain control from Chu Danqing.

Finally, gritting his teeth, he chose to preserve his remaining strength.

"How innocent are these ministers," the young Emperor said. "Commander Chu, perhaps—" He was secretly afraid Chu Danqing would refuse.

After all, this was a perfect chance to weaken himself.

But from Chu Danqing's contradictory loyalty, he sensed a gamble might work.

"Your Majesty's word is law. I will let you leave the capital," Chu Danqing said, ordering everyone to clear a path.

A bandit skilled in movement stepped forward to test the route; finding no trap, he signaled the others to bring out the ministers.

They departed the palace, and only after leaving the capital were the ministers released.

Watching this, the young Emperor was heartbroken.

His hatred for the bandits deepened further.

He'd never strongly supported Chu Danqing's anti-bandit campaign—clearing and exterminating bandits was too costly and burdensome.

But now he saw: exterminating bandits was essential. Only by quelling internal threats could he address external ones.

Yet Chu Danqing's actions surprised him.

He'd actually obeyed him.

"Are all our key ministers safe?" Chu Danqing asked.

A Secret Investigation Office officer replied: "Your Majesty, Commander Chu—seven are unaccounted for; their bodies have been found."

At this, the young Emperor clenched his teeth in fury.

"Have the Secret Police clamp down on them—don't let a single one escape; bring them all back for judgment."

"Especially the bandit leader Kui Yuan—this man is cunning and fiercely ambitious; if he slips away, the consequences will be endless."

Chu Danqing keeps his word: since he had left the capital, capturing them again would be a different matter entirely.

He was certain that Kui Yuan was the linchpin tying everything together; the man was the eldest adopted son of Li Wanwu, and all the other adopted kin obeyed him.

Killing these bandit chieftains and spreading the news across the land would reduce the difficulty of suppressing bandits by at least thirty percent.

This was a rare golden opportunity to complete an A-rank hidden quest.

After handling matters, Chu Danqing turned to the young emperor: "Your Majesty has been frightened today—please rest now."

"I will handle the aftermath here."

The young emperor had indeed been terrified when captured, but he recovered quickly; now his emotions were mostly anger and hatred.

Still, he did need rest, so he played his role, feigning ignorance in response to Chu Danqing, then hurried away.

After he left, Chu Danqing arranged for the cleanup.

In his mind, he was already pondering how to leverage this opportunity to complete the A-rank quest and leave as soon as possible.

It was fortunate the young emperor was sufficiently humanized.

He had indeed been harsh toward Chu Danqing, but among the three reigning Taichang Emperors, he was the most benevolent toward the common people.

Probably because he needed to compensate for his lack of power by winning popular support.

'I cannot kill the young emperor—but he must give me compensation for my resignation.' Chu Danqing thought.

The next Taichang Emperor may not be so humanized, but Chu Danqing wouldn't let himself be targeted without recompense.

He had technically resigned on his own, so he couldn't demand N+1 severance.

If the emperor didn't give him N+2 now, Chu Danqing would make him pay.

These two matters are separate—cannot be conflated.

Otherwise, it would make him look easy to bully.

(End of Chapter)