Chapter 594: [Bad News Arrives] (Part 1)

Li Chen Zhou said: "This blade is named Hu Po, it is the relic of General Wen."

Hu Xiaotian nodded and said: "It looks somewhat familiar to me." He thought to himself, "Even if your face is thick, after all you are a famous general of Da Yong, you wouldn't stoop to embezzling a dead man's blade, would you?"

Li Chen Zhou, however, had no intention of returning Hu Po to Hu Xiaotian, and softly said: "This blade belongs to FengXingyun; I and he can be considered somewhat acquainted, and I intend to personally return this Hu Po to him."

Hu Xiaotian oh-ed: "Actually, returning the relic to General Wen's parents is the same."

Li Chen Zhou said: "Hu Sir should not know the origin of this blade; this blade was FengXingyun's weapon when he roamed the world in his youth. Since he entrusted Hu Po to General Wen, it shows his favor toward General Wen. Now General Wen has been murdered, and the killer happens to be this very blade. I believe FengXingyun will certainly not let this rest; he will surely take this blade to find the true culprit and cut him down a thousand times." As he said this, a deep chill seeped from between his teeth, and his eyes flashed with a cold killing intent.

Hu Xiaotian involuntarily shivered inside, yet on the surface he sympathized and nodded, then angrily said: "General Wen and I have shared weal and woe all the way here; if I find out who harmed him, I will surely kill that villain with my own hands."

Li Chen Zhou suddenly asked: "Hu Sir, do you know martial arts?"

The sudden question made Hu Xiaotian slightly startled, not knowing Li Chen Zhou's purpose in asking this; after a quick thought, he immediately replied: "I have learned some self-defense techniques; if called martial arts, I would probably be laughed at."

Li Chen Zhou said: "General Wen rose to fame in his youth and is also a high disciple of FengXingyun; the murderer capable of killing him must possess extraordinary martial arts. I give Hu Sir a piece of advice: if you truly discover the murderer, it is better not to act rashly."

Hu Xiaotian sighed: "What Li Jiangjun says is true. One must know one's limits; with my meager three-legged cat skills, encountering the true murderer would only mean seeking death."

Li Chen Zhou said: "Hu Sir, coming all the way from Kangdu, you must have encountered many dangers along the way?" He tried to probe for useful clues indirectly.

Hu Xiaotian said: "Dakang is still relatively peaceful, and with General Wen protecting us on this journey, we have not encountered any major trouble." Family disgrace should not be aired abroad; even if Dakang has already fallen into chaos like a pot of porridge, there is no need to tell this outsider Li Chen Zhou.

After parting with Li Chen Zhou, Hu Xiaotian brought the seasickness medicine to the cabin, seeing Zi Juan sitting by the window reading; hearing Hu Xiaotian's footsteps, she lifted her head, put down the scroll, and her beautiful eyes stared coldly at Hu Xiaotian.

Hu Xiaotian, feeling uneasy under her gaze, presented the medicine bottle respectfully and said: "This is the seasickness medicine just sent by Li Jiangjun."

Zi Juan asked: "Why would you suddenly send me this?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Because I spread the word outside that the princess suffers from seasickness."

Zi Juan said: "I am fine; take this back, I have no use for it."

Hu Xiaotian lowered his voice: "Does the princess not trust me at all?"

Zi Juan's eyes showed disdain: "Do you think you are trustworthy?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "If I am untrustworthy, then there is no trustworthy person left in this world."

Zi Juan said: "I don't know why, but I always feel in my heart that she is still alive." Although she did not utter her name, Hu Xiaotian understood that Zi Juan was certainly referring to Long Xi Yue.

Hu Xiaotian reminded Zi Juan: "Past events are already over; the princess need not dwell too much on them. Focusing on the present is the proper course."

Zi Juan said: "Then are you not afraid?"

"Afraid of what?"

Zi Juan stood up, step by step approaching Hu Xiaotian, lowering her voice: "If the matter is exposed, everyone will die without a burial place."

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "I was born optimistic, and my luck has always been pretty good."

Zi Juan said: "If I and the Seventh Prince of Da Yong successfully marry, do you not worry that I, to keep this secret, will silence you all?"

Hu Xiaotian gazed at the icy killing intent bursting from her pupils, his heart involuntarily tightened: "Damn! I really didn't notice before; this girl is actually so vicious. A mere palace maid turned impostor princess, a single incident completed her reversal from servant to master; could this incident also have changed her temperament? I need to be more careful with Zi Juan." Hu Xiaotian smiled faintly: "I have considered this possibility, which is why I left the Xiong father and son behind, lest they be muddled to death in Yongdu and unable to spread the truth."

Zi Juan bit her lip, half-believing: "Will you casually tell others about these matters?"

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "As long as the princess does not indulge in wild fantasies, I will not speak nonsense; actually, we are all on the same boat, we should help each other. Although I am merely a palace servant, I am loyal and devoted to the princess."

"If you are truly loyal and devoted, when we reach Yongdu, stay there and accompany me for the rest of my life." Zi Juan turned back to her original seat and picked up that book again.

Hu Xiaotian's heart already harbored murderous intent toward Zi Juan; this woman is certainly not easy to deal with, but the current situation has developed to this point, already beyond his complete control; wanting to eliminate Zi Juan is absolutely not that easy.

Returning to his own cabin, Zhou Mo was tidying the bedding there, and via sound transmission he said to Hu Xiaotian: "Li Chen Zhou has arranged many spies on the ship; our every move must be cautious."

Hu Xiaotian said: "I heard he is Da Yong's number one fierce general, yet he looks like a frail scholar; I do not know what his true martial arts are like."

Zhou Mo said: "Under a great name there are no empty reputations; no matter what, we should still be as careful as possible. When we reach Yongdu and get in touch with your second brother, then we can consider an escape plan."

Hu Xiaotian sighed: "I just don't know whether there will still be danger along this journey."

Zhou Mo lowered his voice: "Are you worried that Ji Feihua still wants to eliminate Princess Anping?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "This is already outside his sphere of influence; he should not risk doing this. I only heard that internal strife in Da Yong is also exceptionally fierce; the princes appear harmonious on the surface, but behind the scenes they scheme and contend, all eyeing the crown prince's position; among them, the voices of the Seventh Prince Xue Daoming and the Eldest Prince Xue Daohong are the loudest."

Zhou Mo said: "If the Seventh Prince and Princess Anping successfully marry, it will be greatly advantageous for his bid for the crown prince position."

Hu Xiaotian said: "I am worried precisely about this; will someone want to sabotage this marriage? Know that these princes and princes, for the throne, will resort to any despicable means."

Zhou Mo asked: "Which side does Li Chen Zhou actually favor?"

Hu Xiaotian shook his head: "For us, leaving safely and avoiding involvement is most important."

Late at night, lights were still on in the Inner Eunuch Supervision of the Dakang Palace. The door creaked open, Ji Feihua walked out, his scarlet cloak fluttering in the night wind, blazing like fire against the deep blue night. His face was as white as snow, his lips like blazing fire, two long eyebrows slanted into his temples. His eyes were icy like ice; he lifted his head to gaze at the waning moon in the night sky, as if his frosty eyes were melting in the moonlight, sparkling with tear-light like stars.

"Who is it?" Ji Feihua suddenly shouted sternly.

A phantom flashed from the flower bushes, and in an instant arrived one zhang before Ji Feihua, dropping to one knee: "Commander!"

This person wore gray nightclothes, only his eyes exposed.

"Xin Yi! Your phantom movement and transformation are truly perfected; you even nearly deceived the Zajia."

The gray-clothed person said: "Subordinate certainly did not intend to hide; I just did not expect Commander to appear at this time."

Ji Feihua turned his back, lowered his voice: "Speak!"

Xin Yi said: "It has been confirmed that two ferries sank in the Yong River; Da Yong dispatched naval forces for rescue. It is reported that over thirty people were saved."

Ji Feihua frowned impatiently: "Put it simply."

"Wen Boyuan died, Princess Anping survived!"

Ji Feihua slowly nodded.

Xin Yi added: "Long Xi Yue is now under the protection of the Yong army; eliminating her would therefore not be easy."

Ji Feihua's eyes showed relief; he said softly: "I did not expect them to be so fortunate."

Xin Yi said: "Long Xi Yue is now under the protection of the Yong army; eliminating her would therefore not be easy."

Ji Feihua coldly said: "When did the Zajia ever say she must die? For now, let this matter rest. You all cease all actions."

Xin Yi said: "I believe the news will soon reach the capital."

Ji Feihua's lips curled with a faint smile of satisfaction: "I wonder how Wen Taishi will react upon hearing this news."

The next day's court assembly unfolded in a mournful atmosphere, because the northern peasant unrest had affected the transmission of news, and concrete details were not very clear. However, some things could still be confirmed: the two ships escorting Princess Anping across the Yong River sank in the Yong River, casualties were heavy, over eight hundred people, most of whom have already died; the exact number and identities of the dead are currently unknown.

Long Yelin heard the words, his face turned pale with shock, he rose from the dragon throne, and repeatedly said: "How could this be? How could this be?"

In the vast Tianhe Dian, it was deathly silent; all civil and military officials had been startled by this sudden news, but most felt regret without much pain, after all, none of their relatives were among the dead; this marriage alliance was essentially optional, and no one would believe that the two countries would remain eternally peaceful because of a marriage.

Only the relatives of the deceased truly felt grief; Long Yelin was not among them. Even though his sister Long Xi Yue had drowned in the Yong River, he felt nothing—he could simply find another princess to marry off. In the royal family, familial affection is far more aloof than among commoners.

Wen Chenghuan heard the disastrous news, his vision went black, he instantly felt the world spin, his body went limp and he began to collapse, but fortunately the surrounding ministers promptly held him up: "Grand Tutor Wen, Grand Tutor Wen!"

Wen Chenghuan nodded, forcing himself to stay composed, after all there was still no definite news; perhaps his son had escaped this calamity, though he couldn't be sure, but he knew his son could not swim, and his anxiety reached its peak.

The Left Chancellor of Dakang, Zhou Ruizhen, stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, this matter cannot yet be confirmed; what we must do now is to ascertain the news as soon as possible and find out what exactly happened on the Yong River that day." His words had just fallen when a sinister, shrill voice from outside said: "It has already been investigated!"

Two updates delivered, again please vote for the Monthly Ticket! Today is Saturday, I've already been quite diligent! (To be continued~^~)