Chapter 72: Father and Son, Gentleman and Concubine

Several months ago, when Xu Qing had first arrived, he had witnessed with his own eyes the corpse-driver Liu Youdao being decapitated by a deviant of the Heaven Heart Sect.

This had caused great trauma to his young, tender heart.

A wise person once said that the way to face fear is to overcome it.

Now, having personally used the Hidden Blade Art to sever Bai Luo's head, Xu Qing had inadvertently healed his previously wounded, fragile heart.

As Bai Luo's head rolled away, the fear in the man's eyes before death was even greater than that of the fledgling little zombie from back then!

Xu Qing sheathed his blade. Before him, the neck cavity sprayed out scalding liquid like a sluice gate opening at a river mouth, instantly staining his vision red.

At this moment, he, who should have been trembling, inexplicably swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

"So fragrant."

Just as Xu Qing couldn't help but want to stick out his tongue to lick the warmth at the corner of his mouth, a trembling voice suddenly came from his side.

"Xu... Brother Xu?"

Xu Qing's face twisted and shifted; once his features returned to normal, he turned to look at the shivering Young Master Zhu.

"What a nuisance!"

Xu Qing felt a moment of annoyance, but as someone who always considered himself refined and gentle, he released the corpse in his hand and walked over to Zhu Huai'an.

He crouched down, looked at the Young Master Zhu who was slumped on the ground, and smiled slightly.

Zhu Huai'an retreated in fear.

At this moment, Xu Qing's cold, pale face was covered in bloodstains, like a blood-red plum blossom blooming in winter—incomparably enchanting.

"Young Master, do not be afraid. You will be fine after a sleep."

Xu Qing took a porcelain bottle from the Mountain and River Map; inside were two Forget-Self Pills.

After consuming this pill, one could forget their past and present lives and start anew, with the effect lasting for three days.

This was an elixir he had obtained when he "sent off" the corpse-driver Li Shuangxi.

At the time, he had jokingly called this pill the "Three-Day Big Fool Chun Experience Card," never expecting it would come in handy today.

The half-awake, half-drunk little fatty gagged repeatedly as he was choked by the pill, which was the size of a pigeon egg.

He hadn't died at the hands of the Heaven Heart Sect deviants, but he had nearly been sent away by the pill Xu Qing forcibly fed him.

Watching Zhu Huai'an "obediently" swallow the medicine and fall into a deep sleep, Xu Qing finally stood up and looked at the chaotic courtyard.

Four corpses lay scattered in the courtyard in various postures. At a glance, he felt these corpses were no different from the girls in the flower houses who postured and openly seduced decent men.

Ignoring the temptation of the Prince's guards' corpses, he focused his gaze solely on the corpse of Bai Luo before him.

Xu Qing's mind stirred, attempting to store Bai Luo into the Mountain and River Map, but he did not succeed.

"Could it be that the slots are full?" Xu Qing's consciousness dove into the Mountain and River Map, only to find there was still plenty of space.

After a moment of hesitation, he took out the exotic treasure Box Garden. He then hoisted Bai Luo's corpse onto his shoulder, communicated with the Box Garden, and the next moment, Xu Qing appeared in the back garden of the Box Garden, carrying the corpse and holding the head.

Xu Qing breathed a sigh of relief. He could not dispose of the guards around the Young Master as he pleased, but the corpse of the intruder Bai Luo was his rightful prey.

Tossing Bai Luo casually into the back garden, Xu Qing didn't have time to process it carefully; he had to return to the outside world as soon as possible to wrap up this matter.

Leaving the "Golden House," Xu Qing held the Box Garden with both hands and moved his mind; this time, the Mountain and River Map worked again.

Looking at the ink-wash courtyard that had appeared at the foot of a mountain within the Mountain and River Scroll, Xu Qing was speechless.

This Mountain and River Map was purely redundant, like taking off one's pants to fart!

Although this little interlude had occurred, the result was good overall.

Xu Qing changed his clothes, wiped away the bloodstains, and then sprinkled a layer of Scent-Removing Powder on his body.

This item was also a reward he had obtained from the corpse-driver Li Shuangxi; its function was to eliminate all strange odors.

Once this was done, Xu Qing followed the route in his memory and arrived at the venue where the Winding Stream Banquet was being held.

At this time, the place was still bustling with people. In the pavilion, Miss Han Meng, who had just finished playing "Seeking a Soulmate" for the Crown Prince, was improvising a piece called "General's Command" for the Prince of Changting.

Xu Qing found the guards on duty at the venue and explained with gestures, the panic on his face not being an act.

In short: your Young Master had been assassinated, and halfway through, a peerless expert dressed in white with a white veil over their head had intervened and saved him, preventing the Heaven Heart Sect deviants from succeeding.

However, the Young Master's condition was very poor; he had likely been frightened into a faint.

The leader remembered Xu Qing and knew he was one of the three friends the Young Master had recently made.

Hearing this news, how could they sit still?

A group of them grabbed swords and crossbows and rushed in a panic toward the scene of the incident.

In the pavilion where the music was melodious, the Prince's steward hurried inside to report.

Since the situation was strange and unclear, the steward dared not announce the Young Master's assassination in public and could only signal the Prince to step aside.

The two leaned against the pavilion railing, the water reflecting the moon before them, a group of koi just happened to scatter the moonlight.

"Your Highness, something has happened!"

The steward frowned, glanced at the Crown Prince who was nodding and smiling at him, and then lowered his voice: "While the Young Master was escorting his drunk friend back to his room, he was assassinated. Fortunately, an expert saved him, and his life has been preserved..."

The steward paused, not daring to say the Young Master had become a fool. He carefully thought over his wording, trying to be as tactful as possible:

"Although the Young Master's life is saved, he has been frightened out of his wits. The manor's physicians have already gone to treat him, but there is no sign of him waking up yet."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Cheng's expression turned gloomy instantly.

Returning to the banquet, Zhu Cheng did not say much to the Crown Prince; he offered an apology and used an excuse to leave the pavilion.

Crown Prince Zhao You looked thoughtfully in the direction Zhu Cheng had left, and finally shook his head.

At the banquet, the singing and dancing continued, but the "General's Command" played by Miss Han Meng became increasingly impassioned.

At one moment, the tall maid serving on the side suddenly erupted; the dagger hidden in her sleeve struck like a venomous snake toward the Crown Prince's neck.

This was Qing Luo's signature skill. In her early years in the opera troupe, she was best at dancing with sleeves; if a sharp blade were hidden in the front of the water sleeves, it would be a true snake's mouth and scorpion's tail.

At this moment, the water sleeve was thrown out from Qing Luo's hand. At the tip of the sleeve, a pitch-black dagger, clearly soaked in deadly poison, was about to strike the Crown Prince's neck.

*Puchi! * From a diagonal angle, the effeminate eunuch who had been standing silently suddenly raised his hand. His equally soft horsetail whisk acted like a bottomless quagmire, sticking to the incoming water sleeve.

At the same time, in a corner of the banquet, a mysterious person cloaked in black hid in the shadows. When the Heaven Heart Sect assassin made her move, he took out three Thunder Fire Beads and flicked his wrist, throwing them into the crowd of manor soldiers who were preparing to rush to the Crown Prince's aid.

A violent explosion rang out, and smoke filled the pavilion inside and out. The old eunuch holding the whisk quickly retreated to the Crown Prince's side, but when he saw the groom in front of the Crown Prince engaging with Qing Luo, the old eunuch's eyes widened, and he shrieked: "All guards, quickly come forward to protect His Highness!"

With that, he moved with the agility of a rabbit and the grace of a stork, joining the fray.

The Crown Prince stood up and looked at the two people fighting with Qing Luo. It was in this gap that the Crown Prince suddenly remembered something. He turned his head to look at Miss Han Meng, who had picked up the Mingtiao Zither at some unknown time, and said with a pounding heart: "Miss Han Meng, you..."

Before he could finish, the strings of the Mingtiao Zither snapped one by one, and several clusters of poison-soaked arrows pierced the Crown Prince's body.

"Your Highness! (Cong'er!)"

The one shouting "Your Highness" was the old eunuch; the one who had blurted out "Cong'er" while calling to Crown Prince Zhao You was the poker-faced groom by the Crown Prince's side.

The next moment, the courtesan Han Meng, who had acted to assassinate the heir apparent, was captured by the arriving guards.

As for the heavily wounded Qing Luo, she took advantage of the moment everyone was distracted and, with the cover of the Thunder Fire Beads, disappeared into the outskirts of the pavilion.

In the corridor where the Wu brothers were staying, several physicians surrounded the foolish Young Master, helpless.

Zhu Huai'an had bubbles coming out of his nose, crying and demanding his wet nurse to hold him.

"Huai'an, look closely, who am I?"

"Who are you? I don't know you. I'm hungry, I want my wet nurse..."

Saying this, the little fatty began to wail loudly.

Xu Qing looked at his nose and heart, ignoring the other's embarrassment, treating everything before him as just a dream of the little fatty.

Even if it were serious, it was just a dream that might become a dark history for the Young Master in the future, nothing more.

The Wu brothers, who had been forcibly awakened by the Prince's physicians, were looking at Young Master Zhu with blank expressions.

How could the Young Master have become a fool after just a short while?

A staff member of the Prince's manor, a middle-aged scholar who looked like a military advisor, was asking them about the course of the incident.

When the investigation concluded, the advisor looked at the Prince, who had regained his composure, and said: "This matter is filled with unusual signs everywhere. In my opinion..."

Before the advisor could finish, a deafening explosion came from afar.

"It's from the Winding Stream Courtyard!"

"Oh no, the Crown Prince!"

The crowd had no time to worry about Zhu Huai'an, who was still asking for his wet nurse. After leaving a group of manor soldiers to guard the courtyard, Zhu Cheng quickly led several trusted aides back to the banquet.

In the pavilion, the old eunuch looked at the poker-faced groom who was holding the Crown Prince's corpse in silence, and said with difficulty: "Your... Your Highness, it is this servant's failure to protect the Imperial Grandson... This servant deserves to die!"

The groom, addressed as "Your Highness," gently set down the Crown Prince's corpse—whom the old eunuch had called the Imperial Grandson—and said indifferently:

"Companion, I am already at the end of my rope and can only drag this broken body to lay the foundation for Cong'er. I will die sooner or later; why did you not guard the Crown Prince and instead come to help me?"

When the poker-faced groom said the word "Crown Prince," he clearly emphasized his tone, as if stating an undeniable fact to the old eunuch.

"They ruined my grand plan and killed my successor! This grudge must be avenged!" The groom glanced sideways at the Prince of Changting, who was rushing over to help, his gaze incomparably cold: "Companion, regardless of who is pulling the strings behind tonight's events, I will make them pay the price."

No one knew how the old Crown Prince, who had been critically ill years ago, had recovered as if new, nor did anyone know that the lively Crown Prince was actually the Crown Prince's eldest son, the current Emperor's Imperial Grandson in disguise.

As for the real Crown Prince, he was already a "living dead" man, processed by secret arts and on the verge of decay and death.

The Crown Prince was dead, the banquet turned into a funeral, and the inside and outside of the Prince's manor were surrounded by the Jinmen manor soldiers who had been called in.

Zhang Jun, who had been following the Crown Prince and was on the verge of success, had completely lost his goal.

"Damn Heaven Heart Sect rebels!"

Zhang Jun gritted his teeth, pouring all his rage onto the Heaven Heart Sect.

Unable to withstand the brutal torture, Miss Han Meng confessed everything.

Zhang Jun learned many things: for instance, the Shuuhuang Pavilion was a Heaven Heart Sect stronghold in Jinmen, and that those who came to assassinate the Prince today were Bai Luo and Qing Luo, two of the Heaven Heart Sect's Five Luo Protectors.

Holding the newly sketched portrait of Bai Luo and another portrait of Qing Luo drawn by an artist based on descriptions, Zhang Jun began to screen the guests who had come to the banquet one by one, determined to ferret out the Heaven Heart Sect rebels hidden among them!

When he patrolled the pavilion corridor specially arranged for the talented young ladies, Zhang Jun suddenly froze.

Miss Shuyu? Why is she here?

Dismissing his companions, Zhang Jun went to the corridor alone and forcibly brought the woman, who had been mingling among the Prince's female relatives, out.

"You're hurting me!"

Shuyu broke free from his grip, rubbing her wrist while glaring at Zhang Jun.

"Why are you here?"

"What business is it of yours where I am?"

"You!" Zhang Jun's temples throbbed. He took a deep breath, softened his tone, and said: "Shuyu, the Crown Prince has just been assassinated by Heaven Heart Sect deviants. It is dangerous here; you shouldn't have come."

"But don't worry, I already know the background of the deviants. As long as you don't wander around, you will be fine."

Hearing this, Shuyu's heart skipped a beat, and her expression became extremely unnatural: "Who are the deviants you speak of? How is he doing now?"

Zhang Jun froze for a moment. He looked at Shuyu, not understanding why she would use such a tone to say such things.

"The deviants are the Heaven Heart Sect Protectors Bai Luo and Qing Luo. Both of them are heavily wounded now and have no chance of escaping!" Zhang Jun stared tightly at Shuyu, enunciating each word: "Yu'er, I ask you, do you have a connection with the Heaven Heart Sect?"

Shuyu's face changed instantly. She bit her lip, her hand hidden in her sleeve tightly twisting her hem.

"Tell me, where are Bai Luo and the others?"

Seeing Zhang Jun pressing step by step, Shuyu's pretty face twisted completely: "Zhang Jun, what right do you have to manage me? You are just a dog by the Crown Prince's side. Only the Heaven Heart Sect is orthodox, and Young Master Bai is the true gentleman. You shouldn't be targeting him!"

After saying this, Shuyu turned to flee. Zhang Jun reached out to grab his former "white moonlight," but was met with the cold glint of a dagger.

Zhang Jun never dreamed that the girl who had been intimate with him just a few days ago, embracing him in farewell before the villa, would today hold a sharp blade, looking like a different person, viewing him as a mortal enemy.

He reached out and grabbed the swinging dagger, letting her struggle.

Crimson blood flowed from between his fingers. Zhang Jun's chest heaved violently, his eyes red, suppressing the rage in his heart as he said hoarsely: "You blame me for working for the Crown Prince? Then when I was just a boy from an oil seller's family, did you ever look at me properly?"

"Your family suffered a disaster, you had no relatives, and it was I who took my oil-selling money and traveled thousands of miles to send you here to seek your relatives."

"You told me then that as long as you could get a foothold, you would marry me. I believed you!"

"You entered the flower house to become a prostitute, choosing some old geezer to accompany you in your initiation. I didn't blame you; I only blamed myself for being incompetent. For this, I risked my life to protect the Crown Prince, and only then did I have everything I have today. Who do you think all this was done for?"

Zhang Jun freed his right hand, grabbed the wrist of the hand Shuyu was holding the blade with, and pulled her into his arms, moving the dagger bit by bit toward Shuyu's slender, fair neck.

"Shuyu, you shouldn't have hurt me. I have always been just an oil seller..."

Once this was done, Zhang Jun released his "white moonlight," whose pupils had already dilated, and then left without looking back.

From today on, he was no longer an oil seller.

The day after the Crown Prince was assassinated, more than fifty corpses were found in a villa within the Prince's manor.

Manor soldiers came forward to separate their colleagues' corpses and moved them to the morgue for temporary placement; the rest were Heaven Heart Sect rebels, as well as some guests of unknown identity or those who had died innocently.

As an eyewitness who had seen the attack on the Young Master, Xu Qing had the "honor" of coming to the villa to assist in identifying the rebels.

Calling it assistance, he actually knew clearly that this was because he and the Wu brothers had not yet completely cleared their suspicions, which was why this series of arrangements existed.

Xu Qing was not in a hurry about this; the Young Master would wake up in three days, and by then, everything would naturally return to calm.

Arriving at the villa where the corpses were kept, Xu Qing, who had a very peaceful mindset, could no longer sit still the moment he saw the numerous corpses laid out in the courtyard.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 73 =====