Chapter 24: Guess Who I Am?
Yan Bei had only heard about the Du Family as relatives when he was in the Northern Lands.
Prince Jingyang’s Imperial Concubine Dowager and Du Minghuan’s mother are cousins, but over the many years past, there had been little interaction due to the distance between them. Yan Bei had even less opportunity to associate with them.
More than three years ago, he suddenly received an imperial decree from the Former Emperor, ordering Prince Jingyang’s Mansion to move back to the Capital City to serve as regent for the young ruler.
At that time, the Former Emperor’s health was still relatively stable. The First Prince born to Consort An, the Second Prince born to the Former Empress, and the young princes born to the other two consorts had never received any imperial edict or oral decree regarding the appointment of an heir.
Yet at this time, Prince Jingyang’s Mansion far away in the Northern Lands received an imperial edict from the Emperor summoning them back to the capital to serve as regent. Yan Bei suspected a trick, so he used the excuse that the Imperial Concubine Dowager was ill and needed more time to recover, delaying the date of their return to the city by several months.
After the Edict Messenger had just left, he immediately disguised himself and sneaked into the Imperial Capital Region to secretly investigate the situation in the Imperial Court and the Palace.
It was during that trip that two accidents occurred.
One of them was that he happened to encounter the butler of Marquis of Guangling’s Mansion bullying a failed scholar in a post station by throwing his weight around, which allowed him to get an early glimpse of the character of this “cousin” he had never met.
After formally entering the Capital City, his mother worried that he would be isolated and powerless alone in the capital, so she told him to weigh the pros and cons. If the Du Family came calling, it would not hurt to moderately maintain relations with them.
Yan Bei had caused his mother much worry in his youth. Now that he was a father himself, even if he did not agree in his heart, there was no need to go against her wishes.
He thus instructed Gao An to temporarily maintain courteous interactions with the Du Family on the surface, while secretly assigning people to closely monitor their words and actions. If they behaved themselves, then things could continue as such.
If they did not behave, then after a few years, he could find some pretext to cleanly sever ties with the Du Family, which would also put his mother’s mind at ease.
In the three years since entering the Capital City, Yan Bei knew all about the major and minor events involving the Du Family.
Nowadays, people in the Capital City all say that Prince Jingyang is the Du Family’s backer, and that the Du Family dares to act so arrogantly only because he is supporting them from behind.
There are even rumors behind the scenes that the Du Family became the Imperial City Department Envoy because he pulled strings for them.
Censors submit memorials every few days to impeach them, dragging Prince Jingyang’s Mansion into it as well.
Yan Bei could ignore all of that.
Only the Du Family’s strange reaction to these past two days’ events could not be ignored.
While Prince Jingyang’s Mansion’s horse carriage set out discreetly under cover of night, Fei Yun Temple here had already begun preparations.
But this so-called ritual that the Marquis’s Mansion was holding for the He Family was clearly decided only recently.
When the Zhang Family Members arrived at the Buddha Hall, the monks were still setting up the incense table and cushions.
Zhang Shaode understood tacitly and sent Madam Zhang with the family members to the adjacent Zen Room to help prepare incense, candles, and such, while he himself stayed in the Main Hall with the accompanying guards.
It was just entering night at this time, with tourists gradually dispersing in the temple. The setting sun slanted in, and looking around, everything was peaceful and serene. The butler also came to report: “Just now, while this lowly one was asking the abbot about the ritual procedures, I had the guards discreetly patrol around the various courtyards in the temple. No ambushes were found.
“Among them, the three Zen Courtyards housing pilgrims: two are official families from the city, and the other is also two female guests, a mistress and her servant, merchants from the city.”
Zhang Shaode nodded, then returned to the couch and picked up the teacup.
After thinking for a moment, he put the tea back down again.
After several days of autumn winds, the sky outside the window had become clear. Even after nightfall, a few drifting clouds were visible in the sky.
Zhang Shaode recalled that just a few days ago, the Du Family had invited him and his wife to the mansion for the Old Madam’s birthday banquet and assigned them some tasks. The atmosphere at the table had been harmonious, and they could be said to have been frank and open.
He did not know how, but in just two or three short days, he could no longer drink even a cup of tea from the Du Family without worry!
“Clang!”
A gust of wind came to the window, suddenly slamming the window shut and interrupting his thoughts.
Just as he was about to stand up, another gust came and blew out the oil lamp on the table.
Dark clouds crept into Zhang Shaode’s heart. He called out loudly: “Light the lamp!”
But in the darkness, there was not a single sound.
He instantly felt his hair stand on end, abruptly stood up, then took out the fire starter and relit the lamp.
Shining it on the Main Hall, the monks who had been busy in the hall earlier were all gone!
“Come here!”
He shouted in panic.
Before anyone responded, there came the sound of sharp objects slicing through the air from the courtyard behind him!
He whipped around and saw, under the faint ghostly light, dozens of black shadows leaping down from the walls on all sides, charging toward this Buddha Hall in a pincer movement!
His heart jolted greatly. He retreated several steps sharply and grabbed the sabre!
“Master!”
The four personal guards immediately burst out from the adjacent room. Seeing the scene before them, they were also stunned!
“Quickly guard all four sides’ doors and windows! Don’t let a single one of them in! If anyone fails, I’ll send their entire family to Hell!”
He gripped the knife tightly and shouted fiercely, his glaring eyes fixed unblinkingly on the people coming from outside the window!……
Huo Yun on the rooftop furrowed her brows tightly.
“There are so many black-clothed people. It seems the Du Family truly harbors intentions to silence them. But the Zhang Family Members are only so few in number. Do they really need to send so many people just to kill them?”
Yue Tang glanced faintly in the silence: “Of course not. He Hui is just being used to borrow a knife to kill the Zhang Family.
“He is already doomed.
“From the moment he charged into the Buddha Hall with a knife, the label of assassinating a court official has been nailed to his head.
“As soon as Zhang Shaode dies, He Hui will have to go meet King Yama.
“The reason the Du Family had He Hui bring so many people must be to wait for me to show myself, then have these people come forward to capture me.
“With the clues I left in the He Family, if Du Minghuan finds out and still can’t guess there’s another true culprit behind it, then he has lived his life in vain.”
At this point, she looked toward the dark corners on all sides: “At this time, I guess Du Yu is probably already hiding in this temple, just waiting for me to fall into the net.
“After all, to them, both He Hui and Zhang Shaode must die. But more importantly, they still need to capture me, this ‘mastermind’ who appeared out of nowhere, to truly feel at ease.”
Huo Yun suddenly understood, then gritted her teeth: “They truly deserve to die at the hands of the Du Family Father and Son they follow! Not one of these families has a clean conscience!”
Yue Tang put the face cloth back on her face: “To the Buddha Hall! The Du Family hasn’t left us much time.”
Huo Yun hurriedly stopped her: “This subordinate will find a way to tear an opening and cover for the Princess to avoid He Hui’s people and approach the Buddha Hall. That’s not difficult.
“But Zhang Shaode’s reaction is also so quick. Right now, all sides are already guarded by his own people. Clearly, he was prepared as well.
“Even if we can break through He Hui’s people, how are we to get past these layers of defenses to the Buddha Hall?”
Yue Tang looked toward the Zen Room behind the Buddha Hall: “I heard Zhang Shaode’s second daughter also came.”
Huo Yun paused slightly: “Yes, she did.”
“Go capture her!”
……
There were at least fifty assailants!
But Zhang Shaode had only brought twenty of his own men.
Twenty was already quite a number.
But how could they withstand fifty assassins right now?
Even though Zhang Shaode had prepared in advance, he never could have guarded against the Du Family being so ruthless!
“Master, they’re about to break through the door soon!”
In the darkness, both sides had already clashed.
The voices of the guards at the doors and windows on all four sides carried a tremor.
“Hold the door even if it breaks! Hold until someone notices something is wrong!” He gritted his teeth and shouted hoarsely. “I am a fourth-rank general! I am a court official! Hold out until people come, until dawn! I want to see just who dares to assassinate me so boldly!”
Even the Du Family would absolutely not dare to disregard that!
Encouraged by these words, the guards rushed back to guard the doors and windows on all four sides.
Zhang Shaode wiped the sweat from his forehead and slumped back onto the cushion.
And at this moment, a sword had just pressed against his back from behind……
“Zhang Shaode, General Zhang!”
This lazy voice laced with a hint of aloof pride instantly made Zhang Shaode freeze his body!
The next instant, he lunged forward sharply and quickly turned around using the momentum!
Under the flickering oil lamp, he saw at a glance a woman in green clothes standing before him. The oil lamp illuminated her picturesque face—this was clearly a young woman with a delicate figure, but the long sword in her hand was not delicate at all!
“Who are you?!”
At first, Zhang Shaode thought the attacker was from the Marquis’s Mansion, but now he realized he had never seen this face at the Marquis’s Mansion!
But this only made him more puzzled. If she was not from the Du Family, then how had she passed through the two layers of defenses of the Du Family assassins and Zhang Family guards to break in?!
“Before I left the Capital City, I accompanied the Former Emperor to the Xishan Hunting Ground for the autumn hunt.
“You were a minor clerk from the Imperial City Department dispatched to pick up our hunt for us.
“That year, I had just learned to draw a bow and shot a rabbit they had prepared for me in advance on the training field.
“The Former Emperor greatly praised my extraordinary talent and rewarded me with a Spirit Spring Sword on the spot.
“Even you, who picked up the rabbit for me, were greatly rewarded.
“Now, guess who I am?”
Yue Tang moved the sword forward, stopping it at his chest and abdomen.
