Chapter 1592

Hu Xiaotian followed En He through a three-courtyard compound to the Hongyan Pavilion; outside the Hongyan Pavilion were also several Lan kingdom warriors stationed, and upon seeing En He everyone placed their right hand over their heart and bowed in salute.

En He said nothing, striding straight into the Hongyan Pavilion; Hu Xiaotian followed him inside, and the gate slowly closed behind them. The last time he had sneaked into the Hongyan Pavilion at night he had encountered many mechanisms and traps, so he remained filled with vigilance and caution.

En He chuckled and said, "Brother, have you been to the Red Mountain Club before?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said, "I've long heard of it, but this is my first visit."

En He glanced at Hu Xiaotian's face and said, "The Hongyan Pavilion probably isn't your first visit, is it?"

Hu Xiaotian naturally knew the secret, but En He had revealed it to him before even clarifying his own identity—just who was this person, and why would he expose the secret without first ascertaining his identity?

Looking at En He's bulky figure, Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but think of Xue Shengjing, yet En Zuo's build was clearly somewhat larger than Xue Shengjing's; Xue Shengjing was even more obese, with smaller eyes, and En He's eyes were light green, his hair and beard purplish-red. Apart from their shared obesity, the two had nothing else in common.

Looking at En He's obese figure, Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but think of Xue Shengjing, but En Zuo's figure was obviously somewhat larger than Xue Shengjing's; Xue Shengjing was fatter, his eyes also smaller, and moreover En He's eyes were light green, his hair and beard both purplish-red. Apart from their shared obesity, these two people had nothing else in common.

Hu Xiaotian seemed to have guessed something, but still dared not be certain; he was also bold and skilled, so he followed En He down into the secret chamber.

Inside the secret chamber burned shark-oil lamps; this fish oil could burn for years without extinguishing, lighting the whole chamber as bright as daytime. The passageway that once held dried animal carcasses had been cleaned out, replaced by stacked iron boxes. Hu Xiaotian secretly thought, if these boxes were filled entirely with gold and silver treasures, their quantity would surely be astonishing.

Moving forward into the chamber, the first thing seen was a piece of Hetian jade carving three zhang wide and one zhang high; this jade mountain was flawless throughout, all top-grade mutton-fat jade, carved with a picture of a hundred beauties dancing and playing music—large enough for palaces and towers, small enough for each strand of a beauty's hair. Every fingernail was carved with lifelike detail. Moreover, hundreds of beauties adorned this massive jade carving, each with a different expression, vivid and lifelike, brimming with a mysterious vitality. Hu Xiaotian had seen this jade carving before in the Prince Yan's Mansion's Buddha Laugh Pavilion; now he saw it again in the Hongyan Pavilion of the Red Mountain Club. There cannot be two identical things in the world; Xue Shengjing treasures wealth as his life, so how could he bear to part with this one-of-a-kind treasure?

If the jade mountain alone did not prove anything, when Hu Xiaotian saw the portrait of Huo Xiaoru on the wall he suddenly understood. Someone had already, before the court could confiscate the property, moved all the treasures from the Buddha Laugh Pavilion here.

If saying this Jade Mountain doesn't explain the matter, when Hu Xiaotian saw the portrait of Huo Xiaoru on the wall he suddenly understood. Someone had already moved all the treasures of the Buddha Laughing Tower here before the court could confiscate the property.

En He gave a hehe laugh, his eyes narrowing. Instantly he appeared much smaller, his demeanor and bearing completely changed in an instant into another person—he was Xue Shengjing.

Hu Xiaotian stared wide-eyed in astonishment; although he knew Prince Yan Xue Shengjing was deep and scheming, his actions unfathomable, he never expected the prince to possess such superb disguise skills. From his ability to alter his physique, it was clear that Prince Yan Xue Shengjing had mastered the Tendon Changing Bone Shifting technique, and was even stronger than himself.

Hu Xiaotian widened his eyes in astonishment. Although he knew Prince Yan Xue Shengjing's mind was deep and scheming, his actions unfathomable, he never expected that Prince Yan also possessed such superb disguise skills; from his ability to change his physique, it could be seen that Prince Yan Xue Shengjing had mastered the Tendon Changing Bone Shifting technique, and was even stronger than himself.

En He's visage changed in a short time in an astonishing way; if Hu Xiaotian had not seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed that this foreigner was actually Xue Shengjing. It turns out the pinnacle of transformation can freely disguise one as a foreigner at will.

Xue Shengjing slowly nodded, stepped forward to his daughter's portrait, gazing at Huo Xiaoru. Although he had revealed himself and met Hu Xiaotian, he still could not determine Hu Xiaotian's intent—not even trusting his own siblings, let alone an outsider. He understood Hu Xiaotian's feelings for his daughter; the incident in Bohai State had already been verified, and one thing he could be certain of: even if Hu Xiaotian refused to help him, out of consideration for Xiaoru he would not betray him.

Hu Xiaotian saw Huo Xiaoru's portrait and already understood that this portrait did not appear here by chance; it was deliberately placed by Xue Shengjing. After a little thought he could guess Xue Shengjing's intention, and he smiled faintly, saying, "These past days I have been constantly worried about your safety, elder brother; it seems I was overthinking."

Xue Shengjing sighed and said, "Li Chen Zhou is indeed ruthless; I never expected him to act so soon." Actually, he had not anticipated that Li Chen Zhou would move against Xue Daohong; he had thought Li Chen Zhou had already succeeded in turning Xue Daohong into a puppet, with all conflicts only to erupt after the empress dowager's death, and he had been actively preparing, yet he never expected that Li Chen Zhou would get ahead of the game.

Xue Shengjing sighed and said: "Li Chen Zhou is indeed ruthless; I didn't expect him to act so soon." Actually, he hadn't expected Li Chen Zhou to move against Xue Daohong; he had thought Li Chen Zhou had already succeeded in turning Xue Daohong into a puppet, and all conflicts would only erupt after the empress dowager's death. He had been actively preparing, yet he didn't expect that in the end he would still have gone public with the initiative.

Xue Shengjing nodded: "Lingjun and Li Chen Zhou joined forces to do these things."

Hu Xiaotian said, somewhat puzzled, "Their alliance came without any warning; earlier, Xue Lingjun had even used the lives of Liu Changsheng and his son as leverage, asking me to help her kill Jian Rongxin."

Xue Shengjing gave a cold snort and said, "Adulterer ****, dry tinder meets flame, they hit it off instantly!" Even toward his own sister, he uttered the same vicious words.

Hu Xiaotian said, "What exactly happened that night in Cien Garden?"

Xue Shengjing said, "The grand empress dowager was murdered, and Eunuch Dong framed the Liu father and son. They had intended to put me to death, but they did not know one thing: the renovation project of Cien Garden years ago was overseen by me, the prince, and I had left a secret passage in the empress dowager's sleeping quarters—something even she did not know. When they tried to harm me, I escaped in time. Later events I heard about from elsewhere. Lingjun produced a copy of an accession edict, claiming only that the grand empress dowager, out of affection for Daohong, had used a forged accession edict to place Daohong on the throne."

Xue Shengjing said: "The Grand Empress Dowager was murdered, and Eunuch Dong framed the Liu father and son; they originally wanted to put me to death, but they didn't know one thing: the renovation project of Cien Garden years ago was overseen by me as the prince, and I had left a secret passage in the empress dowager's sleeping palace, something even the empress dowager didn't know. When they tried to harm me, I escaped in time. Later events, I also heard about from elsewhere. Lingjun produced a succession edict, saying only that the Grand Empress Dowager, out of affection for Daohong, had used a forged succession edict to put Daohong on the throne."

Xue Shengjing shook his head and said, "I have personally seen that accession edict; my imperial elder brother had already written it himself three years earlier, fearing that should he ever meet with sudden misfortune, Da Yong would fall into chaos over the succession, so the edict in Lingjun's hand is a forgery."

Hu Xiaotian pressed his lips, already able to conclude that Xue Lingjun and Li Chen Zhou had long been in collusion; this woman was indeed fickle and untrustworthy. He added, "Now that the accession edict is indeed a forgery, why do so many officials in the court dare not step forward to reveal the truth?"

Xue Shengjing gave a hehe bitter laugh and said, "Before Li Chen Zhou launched the palace coup he must have made ample preparations; those court officials dare not speak out because they may have been threatened; in this world, those willing to sacrifice their lives for righteousness are truly few."

Seeing Xue Shengjing remain composed despite adversity, Hu Xiaotian secretly admired him, his inner strength truly great. He smiled and said, "Elder brother, how did you recognize me?" Actually, when he asked this question he already had the answer in mind; the key should be Zan Buliu, whose relationship with Xue Shengjing is far closer than the outside world knows.

Seeing Xue Shengjing remain calm and composed despite adversity, Hu Xiaotian secretly admired him, this person's inner strength was truly great. He smiled and said: "Elder brother, how did you recognize me?" In fact, when he asked this question, he already had the answer in his heart; the key should lie with Zan Buliu, whose relationship with Xue Shengjing is far closer than what the outside world knows.

Hu Xiaotian said, "But I cannot find any flaw on you, elder brother." This remark was not flattery; it came from the heart. Xue Shengjing's disguise as En He was so perfect that, had he not revealed his identity himself, Hu Xiaotian would never have seen through it.

Xue Shengjing sighed, "Actually, all these years I have constantly been thinking about an escape route; my imperial elder brother appears friendly on the surface, but his true intention is to eliminate me as soon as possible. Only after his death did I finally breathe easy, yet I never expected the newly enthroned little brat to intensify his efforts, repeatedly scheming against me." The "little brat" he referred to was naturally Xue Daohong.

Hu Xiaotian understood somewhat the grudges and grievances of the Da Yong royal family; he could comprehend Xue Shengjing's anger. Regardless of whether Xue Shengjing harbored ambitions to seize the throne, the fact that his elder brother Xue Shengkang had ruined his family and left him destitute is true, and no one would remain silently tolerant in such circumstances.

Xue Shengjing said, "I visited Lan country long ago; by chance I met a merchant, we hit it off and called each other brothers. Later he died in an assassination attempt whose target was actually me, while he was merely collateral damage. From that time on I realized I must prepare for rainy days; others think I am idle and dissolute, but I merely feign ignorance in public. If a person focuses on one thing and works hard at it for years, he will surely achieve something. This Red Mountain Club, the merchant En He here, and indeed everything here are all my arrangements; few know the inner details." His face was full of pride.

Xue Shengjing said: "I had long ago visited the region Lan country; by a fortunate coincidence I happened to meet a merchant, we got along well and addressed each other as brothers. Later he died in an assassination attempt whose target was actually me, while he was merely collateral damage. It was from then that I realized I must prepare for contingencies; others think I am idle and good-for-nothing, but I am merely feigning in public. If a person concentrates on one thing and strives for many years, he will certainly achieve something. This Red Mountain Guildhall, the merchant En He here, and indeed everything here are all arranged by me; few people know the details." His face was full of pride.

Xue Shengjing neither affirmed nor denied: "He does not know the inner affairs of the Red Mountain Club, but he merely knows my connection to this place and understands that if something happens to me, he ought to know how to contact me."

Hu Xiaotian nodded; he had originally thought Xue Shengjing had been utterly defeated by Li Chen Zhou, but from the present situation it appears Xue Shengjing is merely temporarily at a disadvantage, his hidden strength in Da Yong not greatly harmed. However, it now seems Li Chen Zhou and Xue Lingjun have already won a preliminary victory, the two together controlling Da Yong's court, Xue Shengjing having been labeled a treasonous minister plotting usurpation, with a manhunt underway throughout the realm; given the current situation, Xue Shengjing's hope of turning defeat into victory will be extremely difficult. (To be continued~^~)

Hu Xiaotian nodded. Originally he thought that Xue Shengjing this time had been utterly defeated by Li Chenzhou, but from the present situation Xue Shengjing is merely temporarily at a disadvantage, his strength hidden in Da Yong has not suffered major damage. However, it now appears that Li Chenzhou and Xue Lingjun have already gained an initial victory, the two of them have jointly taken control of Da Yong's court affairs, and Xue Shengjing has also been labeled a treacherous minister plotting to usurp the throne, with a manhunt launched throughout the realm, under the present circumstances, for Xue Shengjing to turn defeat into victory will be extremely difficult. (To be continued~^~)