Chapter 105: Princess Above
The guards saw Yue Tang only focused on attacking toward the northwest direction, and immediately split off some people to assist her in blocking from both sides.
Of course, all the people dispatched tonight belonged to the Chu Family’s deathsworn. The Chu Family had spent a fortune raising them in the past, and when it was time to exert themselves, they had to give their all. Thus, they killed and charged forward, fighting their way over ten or so zhang before finally spotting a chance to leap out!
The sounds of fighting and killing were gradually left behind, and ahead were row after row of dark, silent civilian residences.
“Stick to the walls and move, scout first!”
After Wei Zhang and the others caught up, Yue Tang immediately led them toward the shadows. The person issuing orders would definitely have many henchmen around them. Since they had locked onto this area, there must be traces to follow.
Upstairs, Chu Ying had already seen all of this.
After Mu Chang sent someone down to order the Imperial Guards, those thirty assassins also changed direction and headed straight for the alley.
These people truly weren’t taking money for nothing. After making their move, they immediately found the ambush spot of the Prince’s Mansion guards in the alley. The two sides clashed with sparks flying everywhere. Regardless of whether Yan Bei was inside or not, not a single person was let out.
But when he turned back to look at Yue Tang’s side, he discovered that she, who had been completely surrounded, was actually gone!
“What’s going on? Where is she?!”
He pounded the windowsill and turned his head to look at Chu Xuan beside him.
Chu Xuan stared intently below: “She was just in the encirclement moments ago; it’s impossible for her to suddenly disappear! —Wait, our mansion’s guards are also heading this way!”
With those words, everyone in the room simultaneously looked down.
Sure enough, under the dim heavenly light, assassins dressed in uniform black clothes, each carrying a sabre, were successively chasing over to this side.
“This is bad!” Chu Xuan turned around. “She couldn’t have fled this way, could she?!”
Those words set everyone’s nerves on edge again!
Below the window, only the area near the riverbank had some light; the other side was all civilian residences. To hide their movements, all lights had been extinguished.
Thus, at this moment, under the shadows of the houses, whatever movements were happening could not be seen at all!
“Have people search the surroundings; don’t let her succeed. At the same time, have the people ahead come over to encircle!”
“But such a big commotion will definitely expose us!” Chu Xuan blurted out his concern.
Mu Chang frowned silently, looking not entirely in agreement either.
Chu Ying paced anxiously in the room: “We have so many people downstairs, and quite a few more on the roads passing messages.
“If she really comes this way, she’ll definitely spot the clues!
“Since there are risks either way, why wait for her to discover us first and put us on the defensive?”
Mu Chang still stood with arms crossed, lips pursed in silence.
“Issue the order!” Chu Ying turned and gestured to Chu Xuan. “This isn’t the time for hesitation. Since we’ve already torn the face off, we should only seek a quick battle and quick resolution!
“It’s good that she’s proactively approaching; this way she’ll break away from the ambush in the alley.
“She’s seeking death!
“The alley over there can hold them for at least half a shichen. Once the Imperial Guards encircle, won’t her time of death arrive?!”
Mu Chang finally spoke: “You could also call people over to encircle, and then we withdraw first.”
“If we withdraw, how do we complete this plan? Will the people below stay so obedient?” Chu Ying’s expression was visibly tense even in the dim light. “It’s just the final kick; she absolutely can’t escape! Why are you so hesitant?
“The moment we leave, those below will be a leaderless mob. If Yan Bei steps out, all plans will come to nothing!”
“But how much confidence do you still have?” Mu Chang stared fixedly at him. “You’ve used all your tricks, haven’t you?”
Chu Ying was choked speechless.
Seeing this, Chu Xuan cupped his hands: “What Big Brother says makes sense too. I’ll obey orders for now!”
Soon, deliberately suppressed footsteps came from downstairs, like hornets swarming from their nest, scattering in all directions under the night curtain in an instant.
Yue Tang, in the shadows at the wall corner, saw the direction these people were coming from and immediately cast her gaze toward the street-facing small building behind them, which had one window facing the alley opened!
“Do we have a fire bomb?” she said to Wei Zhang.
“Princess, I have a fire starter!”
The guard beside her said.
Yue Tang thought for a moment: “That works too!”
The guard hurriedly handed her the fire starter.
Yue Tang gestured to him again: “Take off your clothes!”
The guard was dumbfounded.
Yue Tang glared at him: “Outer clothes!”
The guard’s face burned hot as he fumbled hurriedly to remove his outer clothes.
Yue Tang balled it up, then tore off the hair ribbon from her bun, wrapping it tightly into a ball. She then quietly crept forward a few steps, observed, and said to Wei Zhang: “Cover me!”
With that, she leaped onto the wall top, struck the fire starter alight, stuffed it into the cloth ball, and hurled it forcefully toward the upstairs window!
This fireball streaked like a meteor, suddenly lighting up the pitch-black night sky, flying unerringly through the open window into the room!
At the same time, it illuminated several figures at the window!
The fireball came so suddenly that the few people panicked and scattered to both sides! They knocked over tripping stools and, in that trail of firelight, revealed the brocade clothes on their bodies!
From this distance, faces couldn’t be seen clearly, but they were all dressed in brocade clothes—how could they be ordinary people?
“It’s right there!” The guard exclaimed excitedly in a low voice.
Yue Tang gritted her teeth: “Charge and kill!”
No sooner had the words left her mouth than a wave of blade light arrived from below!
“The Chu Bandit reacts quickly!”
Yue Tang cursed angrily. As she prepared to surge forward, footsteps also sounded from behind!
“Princess! It’s us!”
This familiar voice made Yue Tang slow the sword in her hand.
Before her, two men removing their face coverings were none other than Jiang Shao and Dou Yun. Behind them followed over a dozen figures, and from their moves, it was clear they were from Prince Jingyang’s Mansion!
“How did you get in?!” Yue Tang was thrilled.
“We snuck in separately from multiple places, rendezvoused in the alley, then came straight to find the Princess! Just as we were about to exit the alley, we ran into the Prince. That damned Chu Ying actually spent a fortune to hire assassins; now both sides are tangled in combat!
“The Prince had us two bring people over first; he’ll catch up as soon as he takes the leader over there!”
Yue Tang felt energized all over: “In that case, follow me and charge up! The Chu Bandit is ahead; come with me to capture him! Tonight, we’ll settle the murder case from three years ago!”
……
The fireball from the sky caught the few people upstairs completely off guard. The servants, closest, hurriedly went to extinguish the fire. Chu Ying and Mu Chang retreated to the sides, backs pressed tightly against the wall, their pounding hearts not calming for a long time!
Yue Tang’s skills were formidable; this was something they had long known in their hearts.
But in the past, no matter how formidable, it was others who bore her hatred.
Tonight, wave after wave of assassins had surged forward but failed to cut her down under the sword, already showing everyone firsthand how tenacious she was.
Now with this sudden move, this Princess who had once been delicately alluring had in an instant transformed into a demon!
“You still underestimated her!”
Mu Chang raised his head and gazed fixedly through the window at the shadows below. “In my view, you won’t succeed tonight.
“She’s not that easy to kill.
“She’s Yue Tang!”
Every step Chu Ying took, he was confident of nine successes out of ten, flawless in planning, yet at the crucial moment, they all turned to defeat in Yue Tang’s hands!
What had been thrown in wasn’t just a fireball?
It was fundamentally the blazing flames of vengeance poured upon the Chu Family!
She had aimed right at his face!
And Mu Chang’s words made him feel even more as if slapped across the face, burning with shame.
He, the dignified Censor-in-Chief and head of the Chu Family household, with all his scheming, actually couldn’t outmatch a bereaved daughter!
“Master!”
A guard who had run upstairs panting stopped at the doorway: “She’s killed her way to the bottom of the building! Just now, a bunch suddenly emerged from the shadows! They look like Prince’s Mansion guards!”
Chu Ying abruptly looked up: “Hasn’t the area already been sealed? How could they still get in?!”
Mu Chang also lifted his head from silence: “Isn’t it reasonable that they could get in?
“Those are guards Prince Jingyang’s Mansion brought back from Mobei.
“They can infiltrate enemy camps; surely a mere civilian quarter can’t stop them if we get serious?”
Chu Ying gritted his teeth: “What about the Imperial Guards? Don’t let them come up yet? Be it Prince Jingyang’s Mansion or Prince Duan’s Mansion, whose prestige can surpass the Imperial Family’s guards!”
“Grand Tutor!”
No sooner had the words fallen than Mu Chang’s long-time attendant came up: “The transferred Imperial Guards are almost here; please give orders, Grand Tutor!”
“Good!” Chu Ying said loudly. “Perfect timing! Have them come up quick, all of them! Capture this criminal disturbing the Capital City’s order in one fell swoop!”
The killing intent in his eyes was like two sharp sword blades, and with his gritted-teeth voice, he seemed a different person from his usual upright scholarly image!
Mu Chang stared at him for a long time, then looked at the fierce battle below the window and slowly said: “Pass my order: have everyone come over!”
With that, he glanced at Chu Ying again: “My horse carriage is at the back of the house; you can still leave.”
He then turned and stepped over the threshold.
Chu Ying wanted to stand firm but couldn’t withstand the increasingly intense sounds of killing from downstairs.
Gritting his teeth hard, he followed Mu Chang downstairs.
The Prince’s Mansion guards closely watching the movements here turned to report: “Princess! The people upstairs are withdrawing!”
Yue Tang sheathed her sword and looked, gritting her teeth hard: “Chase!”
……
“Have the remaining batch of Imperial Guards responsible for the blockade all come over! Also have the Chu Family people go find your Second Master and Third Master; don’t let them fall into Yue Tang’s hands!”
Midway down the stairs, Mu Chang instructed his attendant while quickly heading to the courtyard’s back door.
At the back door were several horse carriages, all the Mu Family’s, with Mu Family coachmen at the front.
He had just prepared to board when the remaining Imperial Guards also arrived, stopping on the nearby street.
Mu Chang turned to glance at Chu Ying still behind, lowering his voice to Xu Jing: “Return to the palace immediately and do as I said before coming!”
Xu Jing departed.
Chu Ying arrived beside him: “What next?”
“Withdraw first!”
Mu Chang beckoned him: “You board first; I’ll explain slowly.”
Chu Ying set one foot on the carriage, but the other foot behind stopped.
He turned to look at Mu Chang, withdrew his foot, and said: “I’ve realized something.”
“What?”
“Tonight, you’re far too calm.” Chu Ying frowned. “At this point, with the plan in ruins, why aren’t you anxious like me?”
Mu Chang raised a brow: “Must I be anxious?”
Chu Ying’s facial muscles twitched, then he quickly turned to look around. This look made him even more unsteady on his feet!
All around were now entirely Mu Family people and Imperial Guards. During the move from upstairs to downstairs, not one of his own people had come up with him!
“Mu Chang, what are you doing?!”
“From the moment I decided to obey your orders and mobilize the Imperial Guards for this trip, I prepared to do only one thing: turn the tide.” Mu Chang gazed at him. “And up to now, that’s all I’ve done.”
“What about my Chu Family people?!” Chu Ying’s voice changed.
Mu Chang softened his tone: “You heard earlier; I sent them to find your Second and Third Masters. At this point, you wouldn’t want them to fall into Yue Tang and Yan Bei’s hands, right?”
Chu Ying’s cheeks trembled.
Mu Chang’s lip corner twitched slightly, then he continued: “Actually, I originally had confidence in you. After all, I thought it over repeatedly; with your arrangements, it would be truly hard for Yue Tang to get out alive.
“But things are unpredictable; who knew you’d be the one defeated step by step.”
Chu Ying gritted his teeth: “You mobilized the Imperial Guards but only for blockading without attacking, leaving a way out for yourself?”
“Mobilizing the Imperial Guards was, of course, for ‘apprehending criminals.’ I got the Imperial Edict from the Emperor himself; how could I deceive the sovereign?” Mu Chang’s expression gradually hardened. “But if you had succeeded, they would have caught Yue Tang as the criminal.
“And since you failed, the criminal they must apprehend now can only be you.”
“Mu Chang, you despicable villain!”
Chu Ying flew into a rage.
Mu Chang smiled faintly: “You and I both know clearly that to accomplish something requires the right time, place, and people.
“You’re indeed meticulous; you wanted to force me to mobilize the Imperial Guards to drag me down with you.
“But unfortunately, the momentum now favors me. I’m no longer the powerless, trembling imperial relative from back then; I’m the Grand Tutor who raised the Emperor for many years.
“With that alone, how could I be willing to die with you?
“Why would I go so far as to die?”
At this point, he slightly raised his gaze.
Furious Chu Ying was about to erupt when a piercing chill suddenly struck his chest!
A sword thrust straight through from his back heart to his chest, the bloody sword blade emerging with a squelch right under his eyelid!
A Mu Family guard, gripping the other end of the long sword, stood coldly directly behind him!
“Grand Tutor!”
The nearby Imperial Guard leader was startled at the sight and hurried over!
After all, their orders were to apprehend criminals, yet here two major court heavyweights were talking when suddenly such a brutal scene unfolded. How was he to explain upon return?!
“Mu Chang!”
In this stunned moment, a loud rebuke came from the alley entrance behind.
Mu Chang turned to see a man at the alley entrance, covered in bloodstains, long hair disheveled, slowly walking toward him with a long sword in hand!
His pupils contracted, his gaze fixed unmoving.
The guards behind immediately prepared to draw blades and advance, but he waved a long arm to hold them back!
Yue Tang looked at the already fallen Chu Ying, then at him, veins bulging on her sword-gripping hand.
Mu Chang gazed at her from two zhang away: “Princess Yongjia, long time no see.”
“Villain!”
Yue Tang shouted sharply, raising her sword to charge, but the opponent’s large group of Imperial Guards surged forward to block her!
“Insolent!” Mu Chang drew out his rebuke at them. “The villain Chu Ying harmed the imperial clan; his crime is unforgivable!
“Tonight, I, Mu, heard the news and specially reported to the Emperor to bring troops to protect the Princess. I arrived late due to the rain, letting the Princess face danger; please forgive me, Princess!
“And you—”
He turned back to the Imperial Guards: “Weren’t you here tonight by imperial decree to protect the Princess? To capture the criminal for the Princess?
“The Princess is right here; why haven’t you come to pay respects?!”
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