Chapter 790

After experiencing this, Weichi Chong had become disheartened; he voluntarily asked the Emperor to resign his post as Grand Marshal of the Army and requested to be sent to Bei Jiang to guard the frontier. Xue Shengkang did not try to dissuade him and simply agreed to his request. The current situation forced him to make two preparations: on one hand, he let Weichi Chong immediately go to Bei Jiang to strengthen the northern defense line; on the other hand, the day after Wanyan Chixiong's assassination, he dispatched the Minister of Rites, Sun Weiyuan, personally as an envoy to Black Hu to escort Wanyan Chixiong's coffin back to the Black Hu capital, Mingsha City, and he himself went to Black Hu to explain matters to the Khagan Wanyan Lujian. The Crown Prince Xue Daohong accompanied him, escorting Wanyan Chixiong's coffin all the way to Bei Jiang before returning, and the Da Yong Emperor Xue Shengkang also personally saw the coffin out of Yongdu. From the way this affair was handled, one can already see Da Yong's prudence; although Dakang's Princess Anping, after her assassination, received quite solemn treatment, it still fell short compared to Black Hu's side.

Because Wanyan Chixiong's assassination and death, the assassination that had taken place in Prince Yan Xue Shengjing's manor suddenly lost the attention it deserved; moreover, Xue Shengjing had deliberately sealed off the news afterward, and now all focus was on the fourth prince of Black Hu, which suited him perfectly—he hoped everyone would forget that Huo Xiaoru had tried to assassinate him, for only then could he smoothly send his daughter away.

After learning that the assassination attempt at the Red Mountain Villa was related to Hu Xiaotian, Xue Shengjing also felt uneasy; on the evening of the day after the incident, he came again to Qichen Palace under the pretense of seeing Hu Xiaotian off, but in reality he wanted to gather information.

Hu Xiaotian spent the whole day busy with Princess Anping's aftermath; the skeleton of unknown origin had already been cremated and its ashes placed in an urn, and the Seventh Prince Xue Daoming, in public, again showed his deeply affectionate and saintly side, holding the urn until his eyes were swollen from crying.

Hu Xiaotian had managed to escape this turmoil, his only hope being that the seventh day would arrive soon; then he could leave openly and properly, his luggage already being packed. Xiao Hui had grown fat and strong lately, and since the last time he was attacked by poisonous insects, Hu Xiaotian had stopped tethering him, letting him roam freely in the stable. The weather was fine, and the newly hired groom was leading Xiao Hui around the courtyard when Hu Xiaotian's gaze fell on the groom, involuntarily drifting to his chest; the groom seemed to sense his gaze, turned his face, and returned a fierce look.

A faint knowing smile appeared on Hu Xiaotian's lips. This groom was actually Huo Shengnan in disguise; he was full of curiosity about Huo Shengnan's chest, wondering how many bandages it took to achieve that effect, and General Huo's treatment of this part of her body was too harsh—long-term binding surely couldn't fail to cause some adverse reaction to those white rabbits of hers? Recalling the wonderful touch from that night at the Red Mountain Villa, Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but feel his heart flutter; it was so elastic, and if fate ever let him play with it, what a pleasure that would be.

As he thought, this fellow felt a stirring between his legs again, and he was no different. To avoid giving himself away, he wrapped himself in several layers of underwear, three inside and three outside. As the saying goes, where there is oppression there is resistance; he felt that not only had it not shrunk, but it had actually grown considerably, and Huo Shengnan should be the same.

Huo Shengnan released the reins and walked over to Hu Xiaotian. Unable to bear his lustful gaze, feeling that his shifty eyes never left her chest, she said softly, 'What are you looking at?'

Hu Xiaotian grinned, showing a neat set of white teeth: 'Come on, you look pretty convincing dressed as a man.'

Huo Shengnan's face was actually burning up, but fortunately the human skin mask hid any change in color. She was inherently a strong person; on the night the Red Mountain Villa incident occurred, she had almost cried all the tears she had in her lifetime, not out of weakness but out of guilt. Once she accepted reality, she understood her adoptive father's pain and helplessness, and also realized that the best way to keep him safe was to flee Da Yong, never to be caught by the court again, and only by bearing this charge forever would she avoid implicating others.

That night of the incident, Huo Shengnan had indeed hated Hu Xiaotian, but after seeing her adoptive father, she changed her mind; she realized that her predicament had little to do with Hu Xiaotian, and regardless of whether she had participated in the Red Mountain Villa's actions, the court would not easily let her off. The matter of Princess Anping's assassination needed an explanation, and the Emperor and Empress Dowager's attitudes already showed they intended to use her situation as an opportunity to suppress her adoptive father. Hu Xiaotian should also have been deceived, and what annoyed Huo Shengnan was that this brat stubbornly refused to reveal who the mastermind behind it all was.

Huo Shengnan said, 'What's the reaction from General Dong's side?'

Hu Xiaotian said, 'He volunteered to take responsibility for capturing you and bringing you to justice; the Emperor granted him permission to redeem himself through service despite his crimes, and he has now been reinstated to his former post, leading the Tiger Banner Battalion in searching the world, apparently vowing not to rest until he finds you.'

Huo Shengnan furrowed her brows; General Dong seemed to have already cleared himself of involvement, although Wanyan Chixiong had mentioned his name at the time, but the Dong family, thanks to its deep background and relying on its ties to the imperial nobility, easily distanced themselves from the matter.

Hu Xiaotian said, 'He doesn't seem to be just bluffing; he probably intends to get rid of you.'

Huo Shengnan smiled faintly. 'Kill to silence? General Dong must be afraid that if he fell into someone else's hands he would spill everything, which could cause him trouble, but the people involved that night weren't just her—there was also Hu Xiaotian and Zong Tang.' She said softly, 'You'd better worry about yourself more.'

Hu Xiaotian said, 'If he dares to act against me, I'll expose everything about him.'

Huo Shengnan snorted, 'I doubt anyone would believe it.'

'Many mouths can melt gold; accumulated slander can destroy bones. A rumor repeated a hundred times becomes truth, and moreover it's already true to begin with.' Although Hu Xiaotian appeared indifferent, he understood in his heart that the possibility Huo Shengnan mentioned was high; he could not rule out that General Dong had already developed murderous intent toward him.

'Can we leave Yongdu tomorrow?' Huo Shengnan's gaze showed some bewilderment.

Hu Xiaotian nodded and said, 'It's time to pack up; go to my room and get ready. Tomorrow, after the Emperor comes and we finish the act, we'll set off.'

Huo Shengnan said coldly, 'Am I your servant?'

Hu Xiaotian shook his head and said, 'Groom!'

Prince Yan Xue Shengjing came again to Qichen Palace, and he had people specially send over plenty of food and drink—first to show concern for the Seventh Prince Xue Daoming, second to inquire after his sworn younger brother, and incidentally to see him off; to others, it appeared that he truly cared for this sworn brother of his.

Hu Xiaotian invited Prince Yan Xue Shengjing into his room, and Xue Shengjing had the food and drink he brought set out, smiling and saying, 'Brother, I came specially today to see you off; tomorrow we part, and I don't know when we will meet again.'

Hu Xiaotian noticed that Xue Shengjing's mood seemed much better today, no longer aloof as before; he didn't know what happy event had occurred, but it appeared he had already emerged from the shadow of the assassination. Xue Shengjing was certainly no good person; after Hu Xiaotian dismissed the others, he took out the Ice Soul Spirit-Stabilizing Pearl from his pocket and placed it before Xue Shengjing, even suspecting that Xue Shengjing had known the pearl's whereabouts from the start; if Xue Shengjing knew the pearl was in the Red Mountain Villa, he might well have colluded with the Wuxian Sect, but that would be illogical—if they had colluded, why would Xi Yan still have needed to steal his Black Ice Clam?

Xue Shengjing reached out and took the cloth bag holding the Spirit-Stabilizing Pearl, poured it out, examined it closely, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth, and carefully put away the Spirit-Stabilizing Pearl, secretly admiring that this kid actually had some skill, having managed to steal the Spirit-Stabilizing Pearl from the Red Mountain Villa and still get away unscathed, though Huo Shengnan was unlucky, with everything being blamed on her. He deliberately asked, 'Brother, where did you find it?'

Hu Xiaotian certainly wouldn't tell him the truth, chuckling, 'Actually this Spirit-Stabilizing Pearl was never lost; I had planned to take advantage of the opportunity when the princess's corpse was seized to make it mine, but I didn't expect the older brother to also take a liking to this thing, so I could only reluctantly give it up.'

Xue Shengjing secretly cursed his cunning, noting that this silver-tongued little thief hadn't uttered a single truth; deceiving his own daughter was trivial for him. In fact, if he weren't a eunuch, he might barely be worthy of his daughter, but as he is now, he's not even human, not even counting as a man, so how could he be worthy of his precious daughter?

Hu Xiaotian then produced a packet of the Invincible Vajra Set, basically all of his remaining stock; wanting to save Huo Xiaoru's life from the treacherous Xue Shengjing, it wouldn't do without spending a lot.

Xue Shengjing glanced at the packet, his joy showing on his face, his greedy nature fully displayed, and he said softly, 'Looks like we're still missing something.' Naturally he meant the Emperor's order to release her; although Hu Xiaotian had fulfilled two conditions, he was still missing the most crucial link—only if the Emperor spoke could it be natural to release her, otherwise letting Huo Xiaoru go would inevitably arouse outsiders' suspicion.

Hu Xiaotian said, 'Brother, I've thought it over, and if the Emperor issues the order to release her, those first two conditions seem unnecessary; otherwise our brotherly bond would be pointless.' His implication was, if the Emperor speaks and lets you release her, you, Prince Yan, would not dare not to obey, so why did I go to all that trouble to help you find the Spirit-Stabilizing Pearl?

Xue Shengjing didn't even lift his eyelids, saying softly, 'Actually, even if the Emperor issues the order, I could still choose not to obey.'

Hu Xiaotian secretly cursed, 'You damn arrogant brat,' lifted the cup before him and took a sip, then asked, 'What use does this Spirit-Stabilizing Pearl actually have?'

Xue Shengjing, hearing him suddenly change the topic, smiled and said, 'It's not really useful; it's said to guarantee that a corpse won't decay for a hundred years, though no one has actually seen that, and it also has the effect of calming the mind and stabilizing the spirit, so that one is not easily confused by external influences.' (To be continued~^~)