Book: Legend of the Longsword Master
Author: Huang Yi
Chapter 7 - A Shocking Conspiracy
When
I opened my eyes I saw the roof of a tent. The sunshine penetrated the
small cracks of the tent, while I enjoyed a feeling of peace and quiet.
I was suddenly aware and shouted, “Hua Qian!”
A
slender bodied woman gracefully lifted the tent-flap and entered, it
was Hua Qian. Pleasently surprised I sat up, while the warrior who had
always been cold and indifferent abandoned all her restraint and fell
into my arms crying, “We were successful! We made it to the border of
Mo Nu.”
I
raised her chin with my hand feeling tenderness for her as I examined
her face. I was feeling extremely happy, that night of troubles
eliminated any distance between us. She shyly dropped her eyes. I
said, “Since you saw through my disguise so early, why did you protect
me?”
Hua
Qian blushed while softly saying, “I don’t know, but every since I
first saw you I thought of you often, so when I saw you disguised as the
Divine Strength King, I still recognized the moment I laid eyes on
you.”
Right
then a coughing sound came from the entrance of the tent. Hua Qian
left my embrace. Ma Yuan came in with his usual joyful expression.
I
mildly said, “How should I address you?” Ma Yuan chuckled saying, “The
people of Mo Nu refer to me as ‘Fat Counselor’ [肥谋士], so I am Mo Nu’s
chief strategist, and the assistance you gave us by stealing the Canon
of Wisdom was precisely my humble strategy.” Although he carried an
extremely pleased and satisfied bearing, yet he continually tried to
hide the concern from his eyes so that it looked like he was forcing the
smile on his face. Even though the Empire and Mo Nu have bee engaged
in war for many years and the two armies have been evenly matched, yet
the emperor, who is considered unrivaled, has never personally led a
campaign at the head of a large army, so things were now much different
from the previous stalemate.
I
said, “Where is the Demoness?” Startled Ma Yuan replied, “You
guessed?” Smiling I said, “If I still did not know that Bai He Hua was
the Demoness, then how could I fight for supremacy in this chaotic
world.”
Ma
Yuan said, “What you said is true. Initially when we first heard about
you we really underestimated you. It wasn’t until you killed the
Sorcerer that you really caught our attention, yet now it seems we still
haven’t been able to calculate your true strength.” I sighed to myself
thinking that it was only after much frustration and humiliation that I
could grow to my present strength. Ma Yuan continued, “The Demoness is
waiting for you.” A burst of excitement shot through me as I stood up
and Hua Qian followed me and stood up.
Ma Yuan tactfully said, “Miss Hua Qian, could you stay here for a while? The honorable Lan will soon return.”
For
many years Hua Qian had taken care of Lady Jun and provided her a safe
environment, how could she not know what they were now thinking. With a
smile she meekly sat down in obedience while her eyes remained fixed on
me. Along with Ma Yuan I stepped out of the tent and found myself on
the top of a small hill covered with hundreds of other tents. I saw
warriors dressed in white armor carrying all manner of weapons deployed
in strategic locations and when I saw the distant river it was across a
large flat wasteland.
When
we came to the largest, most elaborate tent Ma Yuan motioned me to
enter alone. I lifted the cover, entered, and saw the Demoness Bai He
Hua’s graceful back. Her golden hair was flowing down like a veil and
came to rest on her shoulder. She sat in front of a small table with
the five thick volumes of the Canon of Wisdom sitting next to her. The
remaining volume was opened on the small table while she read it. I
noticed she was sitting on a mat of animal skins that covered the floor.
Her
delicate body suddenly shook and it looked like she was about to faint.
Concerned I jumped forward, ignoring her noble status I reached my
hand out to support her shoulder.
She
looked up to gaze at me. At last I was able to see her beautiful face.
I continued to stare at her stupidly for some time. The Princess, Xi
Qi, Black Widow, Li Qing Jun, and Hua Qian were all first class
beauties, but compared to her it was like the full moon next to stars in
the sky.
It
was a beauty never seen on this earth, that can only exist in the
deepest sweetest dreams, that only appears in a magnificent dark starry
night sky, or perhaps it can only be found in the largest brightest gem
lying at the bottom of the deepest sea. She had a perfect silhouette
like Mother Nature with perfect mountains and valleys, all encompassed
by sparkling soft crystal skin that was ten thousand times more soft
than the smoothest satin. I could see why Qi Bei was so shocked when he
met her the first time. Suddenly, I forgot why I jumped forward to
help her. Seeing the look on my face she began to laugh and like a
blooming flower Bai He Hua became even more captivating.
Lightly
shaking her head she motioned for me to remove my hands. I was
suddenly ashamed of what I did and silently retreated to sit down.
Inside I was still intoxicated with her looks and the fragrance
emanating from her body. The Demoness turned around to face me and
said, “You were able to get the Canon of Wisdom, therefore you are
permitted to see me. Since Qi Bei, you are the first man to see my
face.”
I
stared at her stunning, soul shattering appearance and exclaimed, “It
is not possible that someone could be so beautiful.” The Demoness
smiled and said, “The truth is often more bizarre than anyone could ever
imagine, so people often choose to believe only that which they can
understand and ignore anything with a mysterious nature.” Those few
words carried a profound meaning and like life itself was exceedingly
unfathomable, yet we tend to only focus on the events between life and
death, seemingly indifferent to anything else. How can we change that?
With
a suspicion forming in my mind I felt compelled to speak and asked,
“When I came in I saw you shake as if you were about to faint. Are you
ill?”
The
Demoness seemed to choke for a while before she could say, “No! I
can’t get sick, perhaps it is because I have been reading the Canon of
Wisdom for too long, so that could have caused it, right?” I
immediately felt that something was not right, but I didn’t know what it
was so I asked, “This Canon of Wisdom originally belonged to you, but
where did you get it from?”
The
Demoness sighed as her eyes appeared to fill with ten million sweet
dreams, and her expression became intoxicated as she seemed to linger in
some distant memory. For some time she looked sad, and for a little
longer she recalled fond memories. I didn’t dare disturb her train of
thought as her beauty awoke an excessive amount of respect, and causing
people to hold her with a God-like awe.
She
gazed deeply at me and whispered, “These six volumes of the Canon of
Wisdom are like an insignificant drop in the sea. If you could get the
entire work, the lost knowledge of the ancients would reappear on the
earth, but I don’t know if that would be good or bad.” I was shocked as
I began to understand what she was saying. She quietly sighed again,
“Once the emperor was infected by the knowledge from the Canon of
Wisdom, he created the most despicable dictatorship causing endless pain
and suffering to millions of people. I am already extremely weary of
living, but I am unwilling to leave this world until they kill that
devil.”
I
said, “Your way of thinking is odd. To be tired of the world means you
must be living in the abyss of suffering, yet people are oppressed by
others who are trying to obtain a personal advantage. Today if you
asked for wind you would get wind, and if you wanted to play in the rain
you would get rain, so why do have such strange ideas?”
The
Demoness sighed and said, “Someday you will understand. When I look at
you I see that you have both Lan Ling and Qi Bei’s strengths and none
of their weaknesses, if something should happen to me, you would be the
only person left to deal with the emperor.”
I shook my head, “What possible impact can only one person have?”
The Demoness replied, “As long as you can reach the ruins on the map, you will find the means to defeat the emperor.”
I
sighed, “What’s the use? I could spend my whole life looking for the
terrain on that map and still not find it. We don’t know if this place
even exists.”
The Demoness smiled, “I can assure you that this place exists, because the emperor and I both come from that place.”
She calmly said those two sentences, but it was like an explosion hit my mind.
I
stared into her eyes. She turned her back to me, extended her perfect
jade hand to gently stroke the Canon of Wisdom as she said, “It’s a pity
I can’t remember that place, otherwise this world wouldn’t have an
empire and there wouldn’t be the country of Mo Nu.”
“Why?” I gasped. She said, “If you went there everything would become clear, please don’t ask me anymore questions.”
Her
graceful eyebrows made me feel that if I asked again she would despise
me. Impulsively I burst out, “If I show you the map, do you think it
would help you remember?”
The Demoness said, “I don’t know, but you can give it a try.” I replied, “May I have a brush and some paper?”
“No!”
I was stunned, “You don’t want to know where the ruins are?” Her
chest rapidly rose and fell, contrary to her usual calm and quiet
demeanor, and it took her a long time to regain her composure before
whispering, “I’m sorry for being so discourteous. Thinking of returning
to the ruins excites me and also makes me anxious. Anxious because of
what has already happened in the past, to have my only hope die again.”
I frowned, “I don’t understand what you mean, can you say it more clearly?”
“You
will never understand until you get there. Well, why don’t you
describe the contents of the map while I listen, but you must not draw
it.”
Right then I hesitated for a long time. I still wasn’t convinced that she was being completely truthful.
The
Demoness waited, without any trace of impatience. Suddenly someone
outside loudly said, “Adviser Ma Yuan requests an interview.” The
Demoness gave an affirmative response while hiding her face with a veil
so that only her eyes were exposed. Ma Yuan opened the flap and
entered, his smiling face appeared similar to his normal appearance as
if he couldn’t help breaking out into laughter.
We
both looked at him. May Yuan said, “The imperial army has started to
cross the river. I looks like the emperor has personally led a large
army to attack us.”
The
Demoness knit her brows and muttered to herself, she was certainly a
very beautiful woman. I interrupted and said, “Didn’t you come here
because the emperor arrived personally with his army. What are you so
confused about?”
What
I said wasn’t superficial because it pointed out how it has always
been, even though Mo Nu was weak the emperor had reservations about it,
so he never personally led an attack, however since he has suddenly
changed his behaviour there had to be something major to cause it.
A look of alarm flashed through the Demoness’ eyes as she was clearly frightened by my intelligent observations.
She
recovered and replied quite naturally, “Yes! The emperor has always
been unwilling to face me, because I know his biggest secret, so
psychologically he has always tried to avoid me. He also knows that in
ability and intelligence I am far above him. Today after exhausting his
troops in a long expedition I will annihilate him”
I
said, “The empire has hundreds of thousands of troops and Mo Nu only
has about seventeen thousand troops, are you sure you can win?” The
Demoness nodded with a smile, “ For many years Mo Nu has erased large
enemy armies, just like this one. You will see.”
Ma
Yuan excitedly said, “You still haven’t seen the Demoness’ bearing as
commander during a battle? Once you see it you will definitely be
convinced!”
I already half believed it, if not the imperial army would have already trampled Mo Nu into the mud.
The
Demoness ordered, “Strike that camp and immediately return to the city,
remember to send a rear guard to prevent the emperor from attacking
quickly, and everyone living in this vicinity must withdraw and go to Mo
Nu City so that the enemy won’t get slave labor or army provisions.”
The
command spread down like flowing water as the sound of moving people
and horses could be heard outside the tent, without any signs of
confusion or panic, it was obvious that the Mo Nu military was very well
trained just like the Imperial Black Helmet Elites. Ma Yuan left to
arrange everything.
I
made up my mind, if I can’t even trust the Demoness then nobody in the
world can be trusted, so I began to describe the contents of the map.
The Demoness carefully listened, often showing a moving expression
without saying a word, however even though she said nothing the changes
that crossed her face transmitted her innermost emotions and feelings.
When I finished I stared at her. The Demoness closed her eyes,
suddenly her whole body trembled as she opened her eyes and cried out,
“I know where it is.”
Excitedly
I asked, “Can you tell me?” The beautiful Demoness stared at me as if
she was seeing me for the first time, and carefully scrutinized me.
I
noticed that she was a little uncomfortable and also a little unhappy,
so restraining the desire in my heart I said, “If you don’t want to tell
me where the ruins of the map are, I can immediately get Hua Qian and
leave Mo Nu. My father said that the empire and Mo Nu are on an
external continent and that there other continents beyond the sea and
that there are also other seas.” The Demoness’ body slightly shivered,
“No! You are mistaken, I don’t want to monopolize the secret at all,
but was thinking of other affairs.” There wasn’t a man who wouldn’t
turn soft hearted after seeing the look on her face.
Not
yielding a step I pressed on, seeing the chaos that new hope brought
her I was unsure how it could suddenly cause her indescribable pleasure,
so i said, “You hesitate to tell me the location of the ruins, I am
very disappointed. Could it be that I still haven’t gained your trust?”
The Demoness sighed, stood up and turned her back while calmly saying,
“Or perhaps you should leave, after all handling the emperor is my
responsibility. It has been my responsibility since that former era.
It was so long ago that it now seems like a dream.”
I
was furious, there was not enough time to digest her difficult words so
I turned and with big strides moved to leave. The Demoness’ gentle
voice rose from behind me, “Noble Lan Te.” I stopped, and hoped that
she would ask me to stay.
“Tomorrow
before sunrise I will give you a map showing you how to leave Mo Nu and
necessary travel supplies. I hope that with extraordinary wisdom you
can build an ideal peaceful home outside of Mo Nu and the empire.”
Red
hot anger rushed to my head as I left and quickly walked back to my
tent. Hua Qian was surprised to see my strained face, but understanding
my mood she simply sat to the side and didn’t say a word. I sat there
with no expression. After sunset as night closed in Hua Qian lit a
tallow lamp and under the dim red firelight I gently told her
everything.
I
cried out “Hua Qian!” She was aware that something important happened
and hanging her head said, “Yes!” She looked like a servant
respectfully addressing her master, the response of a conquered woman.
I wanted a little excitement to fill the sense of loss caused by the
Demoness. Outside the Mo Nu warriors were busily moving about, horses
neighed and people were shouting preparing for tomorrow’s journey. As
the great war drew closer people began to feel more pressure, like a
snowball being boiled. Life is merely a short journey. I looked at Hua
Qian’s young body, that had been transformed from many hard years of
sword training into a stronger more elegant body.
I
said, “Come!” Hua Qian groaned, “En!” Motionless she hung her head
down even lower as even her ears turned red. I began to heat up,
forgetting everything I previously suffered as I sat next to her well
formed back. Stretching out both my hands I embraced her painfully hot
waist[小肮 ??], where she had no extra fat. Hua Qian lowly moaned and
closed her eyes, as she fell back into my embrace. Her face was burning
red like a sunny June day. Her chest was violently heaving up and
down, it was extremely captivating. Normally bright light is enough to
inflame people’s passions, but even the soft lamp light was enough to
make it unbearable as we tightly came together, her long and thick
eyelashes repeatedly trembled and her rapid beating heart wove an erotic
rhythm.
I
felt my primitive desires bubbling forth. Although the wind was
blowing outside, horses were neighing, and weapons were jingling, within
the tent there were only thoughts of love.
Suddenly I forgot everything, aside from this single moment, there was no past or future.
I
kissed her moist red lips. I gave that burning kiss of my own free
will. All the disappointment, loss, emptiness, and fear of an
unpredictable future were replaced by burning desire. Sex with Li Qing
Jun was merely a means to an end, but everything now came from a living
passion bursting forth!
This
is the very summit of life that one can climb up to. A strange thought
began to form in my mind. What if I was holding the Demoness, would I
be more happy? This thought surprised me and was immediately followed
by a sense of guilt.
I
threw out those unworthy thoughts of other beautiful women and gave my
heart and soul over to her passion. One by one the clothes on her body
were reduced, yet with every one the desire increased another step.
At the peak of our desire I finally took possession of her, abandoning any remaining thoughts of that powerful beautiful person.
Later
that top female warrior of Moon City was curled up like a tame lamb in
my arms as it became unusually quiet inside the tent.
This
tent seemed like the safest place in these dangerous circumstances.
Hua Qian’s smooth skin reflected the dancing light. I patted her naked
back saying, “What are you thinking?” With a squeak she responded,
“I’m sorry!” I already knew what she meant, “What are you worried
about, you were forced too!” Her whole body shook as she looked up and
said, “You know.”
I
tried to act like nothing had happened as I genuinely said, “The other
day when the emperor looked at you, your reaction told me many things.”
Like a broken string of pearls, tears sprinkled down. This strong
unyielding female warrior, showed her fragile side, “Three years ago I
went with Lady Jun to meet the emperor. That night he humiliated and
violated me. Since then I hate him, I hate him!” That was why Hua Qian
fled from Moon City, if the emperor called on her again to sleep with
him would she be able to?
I
was surprised to find that I wasn’t more outraged by this incident, yet
why was I so easily angry with the Demoness? It was a frightening
self-analysis. According to the circumstances it looks like I have
unconsciously fallen in love with the Demoness, an immortal, unlikely to
age any further, rare beauty. I had another idea come to mind and as
much as I didn’t want to bring up Hua Qian’s former trauma I calmly
asked her, “From your previous encounter with the emperor, were you able
to get a good look at his face?”
Hua
Qian trembled in my arms and I could barely hear her voice when she
said, “No! Even in that situation he was still wearing his armor, and
that terrible helmet. I.....I couldn’t see, but I felt it.” I was
greatly shocked, that wasn’t a man and woman having sex. The feeling of
skin to skin contact would greatly reduce arousal, and he seemed to
love sex above anything else, it was abnormal behavior. My father once
told me, when he was twenty years old an under the emperor’s command,
the emperor dressed in a more ordinary style and he also appeared to
maintain an eternal energy, in other words, he showed no blemishes or
any signs of decay. Could he also be immortal and ageless like the
Demoness? What is the relationship between them?
From
the distance came the sound of a horn. It was an hour before dawn, and
Hua Qian and I jumped up, threw on our clothes and swords, but we had
no other luggage. From outside the tent came Ma Yuan’s voice, “Noble
Lan Te, it is time to leave.”
After
five hours we could see the distant wall of Mo Nu City. We were in the
middle of a large group of soldiers as we moved at a moderate pace, our
horses treading over the plains their hoof-beats making a musical
rhythm.
The
Demoness sat in a carriage with a hanging curtain, but I didn’t know if
she was still bitterly studying the copy of the Canon of Wisdom. I
remembered seeing her yesterday when it looked like she was about to
faint and I thought she might be ill. She was the heart and soul of all
the people of Mo Nu, and if something happened to her Mo Nu would
likely fall without a fight. The same situation also applied to the
empire. If the emperor died, the empire would immediately split between
the people fighting for the right to rule. The real question is, how
can we kill the emperor?
Hua
Qian urged her horse forward to arrive by my side. I smiled at her.
She blushed red and lowered her head as she was intoxicated by the
spring filled thoughts of last night. She looked at me again and said,
“Do we really want to leave?” I sighed, “I don’t know, but both armies
will fight, and just the two of us won’t make much of an impact. I have
important things to do, but I can’t decide if I should help them
succeed, or try to overthrow the empire instead.”
The
emperor brought a large army to attack, it can be said that if Mo Nu is
able to hold on it would already be a miracle, but giving him his first
defeat seems like idiotic gibberish. However if I can find the legend
hidden within the ruins then perhaps the empire could be destroyed after
all.
Hua
Qian didn’t understand what I was talking about, but before she could
ask Ma Yuan rode up and waved us to the side as we came to another fork
in the road.
Ma
Yuan said, “The Demoness orders you to depart from us here.” The right
path led to Mo Nu city and the left went towards and endless stretch of
mountains. He continued, “If you cross the Lianyun Mountains you will
reach the ocean, where the fisherman live. As long as you present them a
ruby from your luggage they will sell you a boat, and then you can
easily avoid the emperor. I wish you well on your new life.”
I held my hand out and shook his hand. Without another word I kicked my horse and galloped away with Hua Qian following behind.
Ma Yuan shouted from behind, “Mo Nu will never forget you!” I let the horse run freely only stopping after a long time.
When I finally looked back, Mo Nu’s army looked like it turned into a winding snake wriggling and squirming at the rear.
With
excitement in her voice Hua Qian said, “Unexpectedly we have finally
escaped the clutches of the empire!” I coldly replied, “No!”
When
Hua Qian heard me her delicate body began to shake violently while she
looked at me stunned. I firmly said, “I want to go back and kill the
emperor.” In such a short time Hua Qian fell from heaven back into
hell, her face drained of color as she cried out, “You will die!”
I
coldly said, “The world is looking for someone who can kill the
emperor, and that man is me. Regardless of sword technique the most
important thing is that I grew up in the empire, I am familiar with the
internal affairs, and my father once told me how to kill the emperor.”
I wanted to lie to her a little to give some peace of mind. Actually
my father didn’t know of a way to kill the emperor.
Hua
Qian bit her lower lip and said, “I want us to go far away together.”
I gently pleaded with her, “Hua Qian, you know that even if I am
successful it will be hard for me to come back alive, so you must go to
the fishermen and wait for me for a month. If I still haven’t arrived,
then you should follow through with the plan.”
Hua
Qian’s eyes were red as she sadly cried, “If you die, how can I drift
and live with no purpose, to keep on living alone. Since I was born I
have never been happier, and just when I caught it and held it in my
hands it flew away once more.”
I
sincerely said, “No! You are probably pregnant with my child, so for
the continuation of that life you must take good care of yourself. This
is something that I have to do not only to assuage my personal and
family hate, but also for Mo Nu and all of those who have been oppressed
by the empire.”
Hua
Qian couldn’t hold back the tears from her eyes anymore and pearl-like
tears streamed down her face. Sadly she said, “Promise me, that as long
as you are alive you will come back to me. If I can’t see you again,
then I will never leave.”
She
turned her horse, whipped it heavily a few times, and like the wind
left towards the Lianyun Mountains. Soon she was nothing more than a
tiny speck.
I
couldn’t tell what frame of mind she was in. However now I had a free
hand and was unencumbered by her, because living with shame was an
absolute violation of the hot blood flowing within my veins, especially
the innocent Xi Qi whose death must be paid back with the emperor’s
life.
I
abandoned my horse and continued walking on foot towards the imperial
army with a content heart and a head held high full of warlike thoughts,
because death was already unimportant to me.
By
sunset I arrived at the outskirts of the imperial army camp, seeing
banners like the sea and tent’s stretched out covering the entire great
plain.
I
hid in a clump of thick forest, waiting for the arrival of night. West
of the plain the sun emitted it’s magnificent red rays illuminating the
army camp and the warriors and horses moving within, making a solemn
and desolate scenery. I was secretly pleased, an overcast sky was going
to help me greatly. The sky gradually grew darker.
At
the corner of every tent there was a blazing torch bathing the world in
red light making people feel that bloody events would be taking place
soon.
Emerging from my hiding place I cleverly avoided a patrol of five soldiers and advanced deep into the camp.
The
imperial armor was forged and manufactured with the utmost care, it was
the symbol of the empire. I didn’t just blindly sneak into the camp,
but there were red symbols on certain army tents that I was looking for
which identified the tents the army craftsmen were in. All the damaged
armor would be repaired here. I selected a piece of armor with the
markings of the emperor’s personal bodyguard. All of the sudden I
turned into an ordinary black helmet warrior, and since my face was even
hidden by the helmet, I wasn’t afraid of being recognized.
My
train of thought had not been completed when I heard voices from
outside the tent followed by the tent flap lifting and the voices
entering. I couldn’t avoid them, so I turned around to face them.
It
was two black helmet warriors. They did not expect to find anyone in
the tent, but when they saw the blood red circle at the top of my helmet
they were immediately in awe.
Indifferently
I shouted, “Password!” Every night in the imperial army there was a
different password to identify the enemy, but I already gained the
initiative.
The
soldier in the lead naturally replied, “Red August!” According to the
rules, I now had to respond with the second section of the password, but
how would I know what that was. Fortunately I was wearing the empire’s
most domineering Red Ring Guard armor, so with a cold grunt I
arrogantly walked to the tent entrance, and both soldiers moved to the
side to let me pass.
Once
I left the tent I began to walk to the center of the camp where the
largest most handsome tents were and which could hold at least ten of
the smaller tents. At the corners of these tents were ornate,
eye-catching banners that were easy to recognize.
The
closer I got to the General’s tents, the tighter security got. When an
approaching patrol came closer their eyes fell on me. I shouted, “Red
August!” The imperial password usually contains two phrases so if you
say one sentence, the other person has to respond with the second
sentence and it doesn’t matter what order they are used in.
The
patrol captain didn’t think it was odd at all that one of the Red Ring
Guards challenged him and respectfully responded, “Imperial Blossoms!”
I now had an advantage as I felt a huge relief, because this would help
my operation greatly. Within the camp everyone was busily preparing
for war by feeding the horses, moving provisions, and repairing chariots
that all blended together into a noisy cacophony. I easily walked
through.
Abruptly
an encompassing silence descended, and the distance between the tents
became greater and I knew that I had entered into the commander and
general’s camp, where security would be a hundred times tighter than
before. At that moment voices came from the front.
Looking forward I was startled when I saw a furious Ge Zhan with a group of high ranking officer heading straight for me.
As
soon as I saw who it was, I quickly dodged into one of the side tents.
Fortunately there was nobody inside. As Ge Zhan arrived at the tent he
suddenly stood still. My heart began to beat rapidly as I wondered if
he had noticed me after all.
I
swept my eyes over the interior of the tent and it didn’t look good.
Not only was the tent larger than most of the other tents, but the
ground was covered with find hides and skins, in the corner a set of
armor with a sword were neatly hung. There was also a fine bow and
arrows, and a sharp spear. Only an imperial general could have such
high quality things.
Don’t
tell me this is Ge Zhan’s tent! Before I finished the thought, the
tent flap was already opening. I quickly jumped behind the hanging
armor and hid myself as five people entered the tent one, of course, was
Ge Zhan. Moved deeper behind the armor to conceal myself as much as
possible. As long as nobody is looking for me, there shouldn’t be any
danger of being found.
A
deep rough voice angrily said through gritted teeth, “Commander Ge Zhan
the emperor is extremely unfair to you. After Lady Li Qing Jun made
such a big mistake, by letting that kid Lan Te steal the Canon of
Wisdom, not only does the emperor not rebuke her, but instead he made
her the Left Deputy Marshal of the expeditionary forces. Compared to
your rank of Right Deputy Marshall it is still half a rank higher, how
is that even possible?”
Another
person interrupted, “According to the circumstances the right to
succeed the empire will fall into that cunning Lady Li Qing Jun’s hands.
Commander you should take advantage of the real power you still hold,
and put your own plan into action.”
All
five people in the tent began to breath heavily as they all clearly
began to share the same intentions that under a despot like the emperor
they shouldn’t even think about. My heart began to race. Why didn’t
the emperor care if the manuscripts were stolen? I remembered that
day when the Demoness was reading the Canon of Wisdom and almost
fainted. A frightening theory began to form in my mind. Losing my self
control I opened my mouth and almost cried out.
The
whole thing was a conspiracy. My heart blazed like a raging inferno,
as I forgot all about coming here to assassinate the emperor and
realized that before the tragedy falls I had to get back to Mo Nu and
warn the Demoness.
I
pulled out a dagger in order to cut through the back of the tent. Ge
Zhan’s voice loudly rang, “You must be absolutely certain that you can
kill the emperor.” Those words struck like a thunderclap inside the
tent.
Everyone
stopped talking. Ge Zhan sighed heavily saying, “The only problem here
is that nobody is completely sure they can kill him. Although he has
the strong Red Ring guards at his side that isn’t my main concern.
Instead my biggest worry is that throughout all the battles and fierce
fighting when has anyone ever seen him get hurt?”
Everyone
was silent. Another person said, “In addition to his godly strength,
and transcendent sword skills, the biggest problem is that full body
armor. Nobody knows how it was forged or why it never sustains damage.
I once saw a giant boulder thrown from a city wall hit him and he just
fell and got back up as if nothing happened.”
Ge
Zhan continued, “There is more. I have seen people throw poison water
into his eyes, but he was unaffected. How is that possible?” The
previous speaker replied, “But he has to at least take his armor off
when he has sex with his concubines or when he bathes himself.”
Ge
Zhan said, “This is one of the emperor’s greatest secrets, but I have
used a clever method to investigate and have come to a conclusion! He
does not need to bathe, and he doesn’t take his armor off when he has
sex.”
There
is nobody that can live like him. Ge Zhan ferociously said, “When the
sorcerer’s dead body was presented to him he only looked at it like it
was a pile of rotting garbage. There was no sorrow, he never holds
anyone in his heart, he never shows his feelings and everyone is just a
pawn to him. The only exception is the Princess and if I can get a hold
of her and use her all these problems will be solved.” Originally I
was preparing to cut through the tent and slip out, but I paused again
when I heard these words.
One
of the officers who hadn’t spoken yet declared, “Right now we have no
way of killing the emperor so we should start with the Princess and if
we are unsuccessful we can all retreat. It is better than sitting here
all day long scared and on edge just waiting for death.”
Ge
Zhan lowered his voice saying, “Is anyone keeping watch outside?” He
obviously had something extremely important to confide to this group of
trusted confidants, and he cautiously asked this question.
Immediately
someone spoke, “I already made arrangements. Whenever we enter the
camp guards are secretly posted in all four directions so that
absolutely nobody can come close to us. Commander can set your mind at
ease.”
At
that point my heart shouted at my luck because I was just about to
recklessly beak out of the tent and rush off to warn the Demoness, but
if I did I might be a dead body by now. If I had cut the smallest slit
it would have been discovered and Ge Zhan would have known that there
was a spy in the camp.
Ge Zhan lowered his voice further, “Although I have nothing against the
Princess, developing our relationship into a romance is still far away.
Originally the best plan was to slowly grow and develop it, but now we
don’t have much time. This morning the emperor summoned Li Qing Jun
and I to tell us that whoever gained the greatest military success in
this war to destroy Mo Nu would also be made Duke of one of the largest
provinces. Although he did not explain, we can still speculate that the
Dukes will have the greatest chance of succeeding the throne.”
The
group of aides began to breath quickly since their fate was tied
together with Ge Zhan. If Ge Zhan was defeated by Li Qing Jun in the
struggle to succeed the throne, the defeated Ge Zhan would be considered
a bandit and they would all lose their fame and fortune with a heavy
punishment and a tragic end.
Ge
Zhan continued his analysis, “On the surface the Princess despises that
kid Lan Te, but according to the intelligence I have gathered she still
cannot forget about him, so if I don’t resort to extraordinary measures
I’ll never be able to seize her heart. If I can become the Princess’
fiance then even Li Qing Jun won’t be able to stop me.” My heart
started beating furiously. Clearly Ge Zhan was plotting against the
Princess, how could I just stand by and do nothing.
Without
a doubt I still had strong feelings for her, after all she was the
first girl I fell in love with so how could I let her become the victim
of a power struggle. The fate of Mo Nu is also in my hands and these
contradictory ideas caused me to groan in my heart.
Ge
zhan said, “Since the sorcerer died, I strongly enticed Black Widow.
She is also Lady Li Qing Jun’s sworn enemy so she had no other choice
but to join our side. She proposed a method to me.”
Everyone was silent. In the struggle to obtain the absolute power of the emperor they all had the same goal.
Ge
Zhan said, “The sorcerer had a fantastic aphrodisiac, and as long as
someone smells enough of it, as soon as they see someone from the
opposite sex, they would want to take them as their lover. If I create
an opportunity I can steal her virginity, then what has been done cannot
be undone. Once I use that method don’t you think that even the
fearsome princess won’t be able to resist obediently falling into my
arms?”
On
of his men said, “The problem is that the Princess is in a large tent
beside the emperor’s tent, it will be extremely difficult to pull off.”
Ge
Zhan replied, “There will be no opportunity there, but ten miles west
of here there is a lake with very beautiful scenery. Tomorrow morning
the Princess is going there to visit and Li Qing Jun’s people will
accompany her there. I plan to send a group of people disguised as Mo
Nu supporters to kidnap her, and I will save the Princess. Do you know
what will happen on the way back?
I
began gnashing my teeth, this Ge Zhan was really vicious. With this
plan he can strike a blow to Li Qing Jun’s prestige and at the same time
make the Princess feel gratitude. If Ge Zhan’s plan goes well he can
push all the blame on Mo Nu and without much extra effort enjoy the
Princess’ virginity.
They
continued their discussion. I heard a distant owl screech. Ge Zhan
immediately changed the topic, loudly talking about how they planned to
deal with Mo Nu. I knew that they just received a signal that somebody
was approaching, but I couldn’t figure out who would come around this
late at night.
Outside the tent somebody called, “Commander Ge Zhan!” It was a very familiar female voice.
I
was startled and already knew that it was the beautiful Black Widow.
As expected Ge Zhan said, “Black Widow is that you? Quickly, please
come in.” Throughout the empire no matter who it was, they would praise
this fickle woman, because the ruthless and beautiful Black Widow
unexpectedly loved it when people praised her.
I was secretly frightened because if the Black Widow came to see Ge Zhan at this hour, then it definitely would not be good.
Black Widow entered the tent. I heard a burst of activity as people moved to change their seats.
Ge
Zhan was surprised and said, “Hey! Why do you have blood all over you,
who crossed paths with you?” Black Widow didn’t respond, but instead
laughed, “Oh! Look at all these people, what could you be planning?”
Ge Zhan said, “With you we have everyone gathered. I have been looking
for you since yesterday but your servants told me that you were in the
middle of a secret mission and had left the army alone. What exactly
did you have to do?”
Immediately
I felt a sense of foreboding as my heart began to violently skip. I
vaguely sensed that it was something related to me. In fact every since
that day at the banquet when she didn’t expose me, I haven’t been able
to figure out what she had hidden up her sleeve.
Black
Widow let out a peal of laughter that revealed both hatred and pleasure
together. Ge Zhan silently waited for her to speak as he clearly didn’t
know what this fickle woman was thinking either.
With her sexy voice Black Widow said, “I went to track that kid Lan Te.”
Everyone within the tent couldn’t help but utter an “Oh!” and I suddenly felt dismayed.
Ge
Zhan lowered his voice saying, “Since the sorcerer is dead you are
already the best tracker in the empire, surely you have some good news?”
I
didn’t feel too encouraged, but at the same time I couldn’t understand
why the Black Widow who I already defeated would come after me alone.
Did she think she could deal with me by herself? It was a mystery to
me.
In a voice brimming with hate she said, “I couldn’t find Lan Te, but I found his woman and just brought her back as a captive.”
My
heart almost jumped out of my mouth, Hua Qian actually fell into that
poisonous woman’s hands. Ge Zhan said, “You captured Hua Qian?”
Black
Widow coldly said, “She is at my secret hiding place outside of the
camp. Who would have thought she was so useless. Apparently that Lan
she relied upon abandoned her and her mind was thrown into disorder so
that her awareness was greatly reduced.” Ge Zhan said, “Did you ask her
Lan Te’s whereabouts?”
Black
Widow ferociously said, “That lowly woman wasn’t willing to say, so you
will have to torture it out of her. I will hand her over to you
immediately but only on one condition.”
My
mind was thrown into confusion. I might be able to ignore the princess
matter, but as for Hua Qian I can’t refuse to do something, also the
fate of Mo Nu is resting in my hands. What am I supposed to do?
Ge Zhan lowered his voice saying, “Does Li Qing Jun and the generals know about this yet?”
Black
Condition replied, “Of course they don’t know, otherwise I wouldn’t
have come to you with conditions.” Ge Zhan said, “What conditions?”
“I want to monopolize the secret of Lan Te’s whereabouts so that I can single-handedly track him down myself.”
Ge
Zhan was startled, “Lan Te is not so easy to deal with, are you sure?”
With a tender smile she said, “You don’t have to worry about it, I have
my own methods.”
Ge Zhan chuckled, “You aren’t also thinking about monopolizing Lan Te’s map to the ruins are you?”
Black
Widow coldly replied, “Set your mind at ease! Our fate is already
sealed together, we advance and retreat together so if I do get my hands
on the secret to the location of the ruins you will certainly be the
one who benefits. The emperor is so nervous so there must be something
within the ruins that can deal with him. Isn’t that what you are
dreaming of?”
Ge
Zhan lightly said, “How do I know that you will still remember that you
are my partner?” Black Widow laughed before bending forward and saying
sweetly, “Don’t worry, I will let you make me your wife and when the
time comes we can share the glory together.”
Of
course Ge Zhan knew she was only joking. Even if Ge Zhan’s goal wasn’t
the princess he knew that every man that got drawn into a relationship
with Black Widow came to a miserable end and he didn’t want to have the
same experience.
Ge
Zhan laughed and said, “We are old comrades so there is no need to talk
like this. Well! Since it has been decided, where is Hua Qian?” The
old fox was already running through countermeasures in his head.
“I will hide her in a secret location East of the camp.” She then gave a brief description of the location.
Ge
Zhan said to one of his men, “Gao Jin, I want you to handle this
matter. Take several of your most competent men and bring Hua Qian back
to the camp before sunrise. I will personally interrogate her and
later I will make her call me husband. She will have to obediently cry
out” Everyone burst out into laughter full of cruel intent.
Gao
Jin accepted the order and left. My mind began to race as Ge Zhan and
Black Widow discussed how to trap the Princess so I wasn’t able to
leave. It wasn’t until another hour had gone by that people started to
leave one by one. I began to feel anxious again knowing I would have to
leave the camp again, and rush immediately to the place Black Widow
said she hid Huan Qian. As long as I can rescue Hua Qian, I will
immediately turn around, go straight to Mo Nu, and ignore everything
else.
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