Chapter 103: Heaven’s Net And Earth’s Web
Yue Tang truly hadn’t expected that the Chu Bandit would even mobilize the Imperial Guards just to kill her!
Mobilizing the Imperial Guards meant dragging the Emperor down with them.
If the Chu Family merely used assassins in private, with Yue Tang’s current strength plus Prince Jingyang’s Mansion, no one should be their match.
It could also be said that they had full confidence in joining forces to capture those two and complete their revenge for that murder three years ago tonight.
Next, they would return to Prince Duan’s Mansion, using the forces the mansion could mobilize and the conveniences of his status as an Imperial Clan Female Relative to gradually uncover the secrets behind the conspiracy, then complete unfinished matters like the deaths of Prince Duan and his son.
But the Imperial Guards are the Emperor’s men. Were they mobilized here by the Mu Family and Chu Family faking an Imperial Edict, or was it the Emperor’s intention?
And does the Emperor know about this?
If the Imperial Guards make a move, even if they mistakenly kill Yue Tang, in the end they would have to let the mistake stand.
Moreover, even if Yan Bei were here, he couldn’t directly confront the Imperial Guards, or else a charge of the Crime of Deceiving the Emperor or directly accusing him of treason would pin him down legitimately.
But Yue Tang is a Princess.
A Princess is a Princess!
She is an Imperial Clan descendant, and her own grandfather is this dynasty’s Former Emperor!
Not just anyone can touch her!
Mu Chang dares to mobilize troops to seal and surround, but that doesn’t mean he dares tell these people to come kill an Imperial Clan Princess!
If he dared, if he could convince them to openly kill an Imperial Clan Princess in front of Regent Minister Yan Bei, he would have to have thought of a very good reason in advance!
A reason sufficient to suppress Yan Bei and prevent him from accusing them of openly killing an Imperial Clan member!
She, Yue Tang, just didn’t want to step forward and announce to the world that she was Princess Yongjia; she wasn’t unable to say it! Nor was she afraid to say it!
Originally she did think the Imperial Guards moving out was bad news, but Yan Bei had come—he was Prince Jingyang! Even without her Household Registration File on her, Yan Bei could prove her identity!
So with him here, this battle might not be lost!
But what Yue Tang wanted was more than just “not losing”; she also wanted to take down the Chu Bandit!
……
Hooves clattered against the bluestone bricks in the dark alley.
At this moment, at the alley’s end stood a small building facing the street amid a patch of pitch-black civilian houses; inside the room, an oil lamp flickered dimly, casting a ghostly light on Chu Ying’s face behind the desk.
On the table before Chu Ying was an Imperial City map fetched earlier from the Imperial City Temple, with the route from the Supreme Court to the riverbank heavily marked.
Chu Rui and Chu Xuan both stood at his side, silently awaiting that heart-pounding moment amid the boiling water in the teapot.
But Chu Xuan, listening intently to the silent outside, couldn’t help saying, “The person has taken the bait. By now, they should have reached the riverbank.
“But there’s still no movement. Have they already run into the first wave’s ambush? Nothing unexpected happened, right?”
“Fighting takes time; it won’t be that quick.” Chu Rui glanced at him. “Yue Tang studied under famous masters from childhood, excelling in both civil and martial arts. That she escaped such a setup three years ago should tell you she’s no ordinary person.
“We only placed ten people in the alley, and they have about twenty. We never expected to succeed in one strike.”
With that, he walked to the window, looking out with great ambition: “The Grand Tutor’s actions are effective. Unexpectedly, he mobilized twice the number we proposed, just in time to seal off the surroundings after they entered the alley.
“This way, even if we don’t succeed in one go, she won’t escape even with wings.”
Hearing this, Chu Xuan added, “But even with twice the men, they’re only sealing the surroundings, with no one coming to coordinate the assassination with us.”
“We have fifty men; that’s enough,” Chu Rui said dismissively. “As long as they can’t escape, at the critical moment, the Grand Tutor will naturally have them act. Could they really let her get away?”
Chu Xuan fell silent. A moment later, he said, “Is the entire surrounding area sealed off? Including the river?”
“Don’t worry.” Chu Rui turned. “Several small boats have long been arranged on the river; earlier I saw everyone already aboard.
“Before we succeed, no one from outside can enter, and no one inside can leave!”
Beneath his upturned short mustache, the corner of his mouth held malice and mockery, blending into the smugness of assured victory.
Chu Xuan turned to his eldest brother Chu Ying: “If no one can enter or leave, doesn’t that mean if something unexpected happens, we few can’t leave either?”
“What kind of talk is that?” Chu Rui cut him off. “The Imperial Guards act on the Grand Tutor’s orders. Once he arrives, who could block our way?”
Chu Xuan was still worried: “Will the Grand Tutor come? Three years ago, for what we did to Yue Tang, he only pointed out one path from start to finish, and that privately to Eldest Brother. Besides us, no one knows it was by his Instruction.
“If it were me, dispatching the Imperial Guards in the name of Apprehending Criminals would already be plenty benevolent; no need to come personally.”
Back then, Chu Ying was sought out by Mu Chang; they agreed each to handle a wave—the Chu Family to eliminate Princess Yongjia, the rest by the Mu Family. Now that things had leaked on Yue Tang’s side, she might suspect the Mu Family as accomplices, but she couldn’t have evidence on him yet. So he sent the Imperial Guards and stayed safely in the mansion; Chu Xuan didn’t believe Mu Chang would brave the rain to come here.
Chu Ying, behind the desk, finished listening and gazed ahead in a daze.
But at that silent moment, thumping footsteps sounded on the stairs.
The guard posted downstairs at the doorway appeared: “Master, the Grand Tutor is here!”
That short sentence made the three in the room simultaneously straighten up.
Sure enough, rhythmic footsteps followed on the stairs; the longtime attendant who usually followed Mu Chang appeared first at the door, bowing toward the stairwell.
Chu Ying glanced at Chu Xuan, then quickly stepped out and cupped his hands to the already-arrived Mu Chang: “Grand Tutor!”
Mu Chang handed his hat to the attendant, returned the salute, then led the man behind him inside.
Chu Ying said “Please” and led them to sit by the table, lifting the teapot from the stove to pour him tea. “Tonight’s Plan is airtight; with the Grand Tutor coming personally, it’s even more foolproof.”
Chu Xuan, bringing up the rear, quickly closed the door and stood by the side.
Mu Chang said, “Success or failure hangs on this one move. We missed once three years ago; this time, there can be no mistake.
“For that, I’ve brought a Palace Servant who once served the Former Empress, to verify her identity.”
With that, he glanced back; the pale-faced, beardless middle-aged man in ordinary attire stepped forward: “This lowly one is Xu Jing; greetings to the Censor-in-Chief.”
Mu Chang said, “Xu Jing followed in the Former Empress’s palace from his earliest entry; he can recognize Princess Yongjia.”
Chu Ying’s gaze lingered on Xu Jing’s face, then he said, “Yue Tang received much protection from the Former Empress back then; with someone from her entourage to identify, there’ll be no mistake.”
Mu Chang glanced toward the window: “How’s it going? Has she arrived?”
Chu Rui, responsible for updates, stepped forward and reported the current situation. Out of caution, he then sent someone downstairs for the latest.
The man returned to report: “The ones ambushed in the alley haven’t come back, and the scouts sent to the alley heard no sounds, but there are traces of startled birds flapping wildly—we guess they’ve already clashed!”
Chu Ying looked across: “It won’t take long to exit the alley. Even if they plan to retreat, the Imperial Guards blocking the path will stop them.
“In short, advance and she’s dead, retreat and she’s dead! Within an hour, we’ll surely capture her!”
Mu Chang brought a cup of hot tea to his lips, then set it down midway: “How many men did you bring?”
“Fifty.”
“Did you arrange reinforcements?”
Chu Ying paused slightly: “What then?”
Mu Chang frowned: “Her ties with Yan Bei are so close, and she’s always extremely cautious. For her to come here with Li Yue, she wouldn’t be reckless.
“I’m thinking, if she secretly sent word to Yan Bei, we might not take her down so smoothly.”
“Where does that come from?” Chu Rui couldn’t help saying. “Even if we brought no one, with the doubled Imperial Guards from the Grand Tutor, isn’t that enough for one like her?
“With the Imperial Guards out, Yan Bei has no right to barge in. Unless he wants a Crime of Deceiving the Emperor!”
“You know this ‘Crime of Deceiving the Emperor’ too.” Mu Chang shifted his gaze back to Chu Ying. “The Imperial Guards were mobilized in the name of Apprehending Criminals. If she steps out claiming to be Princess Yongjia, the Imperial Guards can’t just ignore it and kill first.
“Even stepping back ten thousand steps, if we’ve resolved to do it and Yan Bei has no right to force entry, he does have the power to stop the Imperial Guards from killing under these circumstances.”
Chu Ying pondered: “You mean our actions must be fast enough.”
“Not just fast enough. We need two contingency plans.” Mu Chang’s eyes gleamed. “Right now, we must guard against Yan Bei.
“If Yan Bei unluckily shows up, the Imperial Guards won’t be able to kill. Once they do, he’ll pursue it to the end.
“Then our faking an Imperial Edict to mobilize troops for Premeditation would be solid evidence!”
Chu Ying narrowed his eyes slightly: “So you mean the Imperial Guards can only serve to seal and surround?”
“Unless absolutely necessary, they can’t approach the scene.” Mu Chang thought slowly and deeply. “Even a powerless Yue Tang has muddied the entire Capital City; what more with a Yan Bei added?
“Past failures have taught us never to let our guard down.
“Moreover, back then we thought taking Prince Duan’s Mansion meant all was settled, yet the Former Emperor had arranged Yan Bei in the Capital City ahead of time.
“This shows we’ve never truly been the final winners.”
Chu Ying fell silent.
If enthroning the Second Prince was their initial goal and perceived end, then the Former Emperor enfeoffing the Shen clan as Empress amid illness and granting her seal authority on his deathbed added an obstacle.
Not to mention, unbeknownst to anyone, he had an edict sent to Mobei, bringing Prince Jingyang—who commanded hundreds of thousands of elite troops—into the Imperial Court as Regent; it was like another massive mountain dropped on their path.
So Mu Chang was right: even today, though they’d reached the top three ministers, they hadn’t cleared all obstacles.
He frowned and said, “I left my youngest in the mansion to manage; before leaving, I instructed him, against anyone striking the Chu Family, to spend heavily to gather fifty assassins on standby in the mansion.
“A quarter-hour ago, I received word: all have arrived.
“If the Grand Tutor thinks these fifty I brought aren’t enough, I can summon thirty more.”
Mu Chang said, “Excellent.”
Chu Ying nodded and signaled Chu Xuan with a hand gesture.
Chu Xuan went downstairs but collided with a guard rushing back through the rain curtain.
“Third Master, she’s here!”
The guard spoke urgently, turning to point behind.
Looking over, Chu Xuan saw one person, one horse, one dark shadow charging from the alley half a li ahead; hooves and the horse’s neigh tore through the rain curtain!
Chu Xuan paused, then said, “Send word back to the mansion: have the Second Young Master send thirty more for reinforcements! Hurry!”
Dropping that, he spun and raced upstairs, bursting into the room: “She’s here!”
The two seated across from each other in the room stood, simultaneously blowing out the oil lamp on the table, then moved to the window to look out!
In the night, the water reflected lights from the opposite bank; by their faint glow, they could clearly see that on the riverbank directly facing the alley entrance ahead, a group of troops had halted in the open ground.
The person on the tall horse was extremely slender, her skirt fluttering in the night wind, long sword gleaming coldly in her hand—who else but Yue Tang, once dreaded by the Zhang and Liang Families?
“It’s time!”
Chu Ying whirled: “Second Brother, go down now, release the signal, order the ambushes on both sides to strike simultaneously!
“Have the crossbowmen on the other side mount the walls!
“Once the ambush tangles them, loose arrows immediately!
“No hesitation!”
Chu Rui nodded firmly.
After he left, Chu Ying turned to Chu Xuan: “Pull a few from below to scout the alley behind them, see if there’s any trickery.
“See if there are other hidden forces.
“If so, delay them as soon as possible!”
Chu Xuan left too.
Chu Ying looked to Mu Chang: “Since the Grand Tutor worries Yan Bei might interfere, we still need to send someone to check Yan Bei’s whereabouts, so you and I know where we stand.”
“Don’t worry,” Mu Chang said. “Before coming, I already sent people. Not just Yan Bei—I’ve had Dou Yun watched too.
“Yan Bei snatched the Imperial City Department Envoy post from me for Dou Yun. As I hear, he took office this afternoon, showing Yue Tang urgently needs manpower.
“If she had time to Contact outside now, besides Yan Bei, there’d surely be a Dou Yun.
“Any sign of trouble, they’ll report immediately!”
“The Grand Tutor truly considers everything,” Chu Ying nodded, both gazing toward the forward position where clashes of weapons had begun, placing the timepiece by the window on the sill. “Then you and I shall prepare to collect her corpse next!”
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