Unparalleled Evildoer

Chapter 151 The situation is getting more chaotic
The moon and stars had disappeared, the autumn wind was blowing gently, there were few people in the city, and the lights still illuminated the ancient streets. It was already the hour of Xu when Wuzhan and Miaoxin left the Tingwei Mansion. They did not return home, but went to Qingya Pavilion instead.

Zhang Liang and others were in Qingya Pavilion. After learning that Princess Yu's condition had not worsened, Wuzhan went into a private room on the second floor with Zhang Liang, Yi Shuihan, and Yin Lingchong for a secret talk. Miaoxin, Guo Zijing and others were waiting downstairs.

Wuzhan briefly recounted the Fenglingdu incident and what happened tonight in the Tingwei Mansion to the three of them, hoping that they could pay close attention and observe secretly.

After hearing this, Yin Lingchong thought, "I think of a man named Fenyuan, who practices the art of the netherworld and is good at controlling ghosts with a golden flute. He often appears at night and is known as the 'White-faced Impermanence'. He used to roam around and plunder treasures. He broke into the State of Wei at night and stole jewels, which angered the King of Wei. He called on the wise men of the time to eliminate the evil for the people. It is said that this man died in Heze. This incident happened more than 50 years ago, so it may not be him."

Zhang Liang said, "I think this person is very likely him. Since he practices the art of the netherworld, he may have escaped that disaster and it is not impossible for him to live another fifty years."

Wuzhan said, "The person who released the invisible needle, I suspect it was the Pavilion Master of Tiansha Pavilion, Xiao Jinghong. I have seen him fighting with someone before. He condensed poison gas into ice needles, which spread immediately after entering the body. The wounds were very small and difficult to detect. He killed people invisibly. However, I did not see the assassin's figure clearly tonight, so I cannot be sure that it was him."

Yi Shuihan said, "This afternoon, I encountered something strange by the Wei River. I saw a group of people carrying a coffin off a boat. The group said that an old man died in another place and was returning to their hometown for burial. Because the body inside was emitting a stench, the officials only opened a corner during the inspection, took a quick glance, and then let them pass. The coffin seemed very heavy, and it was very difficult for several people to carry it. Now I think there must be something wrong with the coffin. It shouldn't be just a corpse inside. Maybe the corpse is just a cover-up."

Wuzhan's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he thought, "This information is very important. The jewels are probably in the coffin. Transporting the jewels to Xianyang, thus avoiding Feng Jie's search, is unexpected and safer." He then asked, "Where did the group go?"

"I just felt it was strange at the time and didn't follow them, but they went to the east of the city, so we can find out if we ask around."

"Thank you, Brother Yi. I will check this matter out tomorrow."

Zhang Liang said, "Brother Li, you have to be careful of Yao Jia. The assassin chose you instead of him. I think he is very suspicious!"

Wuzhan thought: "Although I can see his problem, I don't know what their ultimate goal is. Without sufficient evidence, suspicion is useless."

Zhang Liang said, "Speaking of this, I suddenly remembered that we have been keeping a close eye on the city these past few days and have discovered that mysterious people often come in and out of the Taiwei Mansion. Two of them have unfathomable abilities. I wonder what they are doing here secretly with Wang Ben!"

Wuzhan said in a deep voice: "Wang Ben controls most of the military power of Qin. Apart from Ying Zheng, he has the highest status in Qin. He met with the mysterious man secretly. I think he must have some purpose. It is very likely related to this matter. The undead borrowed the passage, destroyed the mercury, and the water ghost boarded the ship and robbed the jewels, leaving behind the words 'extortion and extortion, people resent the anger of heaven', as well as the porcelain fragment. What do they want?"

Zhang Liang said: "This is very interesting. I wonder if he agrees with us or if he wants to frame us, the heroes who fought against Qin."

Wuzhan said calmly, "I have a vague feeling that neither of these two is the case. It seems that the person being framed is still in the dark. Once he finds out, it will be too late. The situation is getting more and more confusing."

Zhang Liang said, "Isn't this chaos exactly what Brother Li wants?"

"It is indeed what I want, but it is beyond my control right now. I may even lose my life."

Zhang Liang asked, "Could it be that those doctors did this? Brother Li offended them and they are responsible for this matter. They created trouble and prevented me from closing the case. They wanted to use this to get rid of you?"

"If they had so many experts, they wouldn't have to go through so much trouble to get rid of me."

"We will continue to investigate in secret, and if there is any sign of trouble, we will immediately notify Brother Li."

……

Just as Wuzhan was about to go downstairs, Luoyan stopped him and said, "Sir, please stay. I beg you to go see the young lady. She is still playing the piano these days, and I can't persuade her."

Wuzhan walked lightly into Gongsun Yu's room and saw Gongsun Yu sitting in front of the dressing table with her brows slightly furrowed. She stared blankly at her own reflection in the bronze mirror, wondering what she was thinking about. Her pretty face was reflected in the dim light, soft and delicate, and Wuzhan's heart couldn't help but be moved.

"Where have you been these days, sir? Why didn't you come to see Yu'er?" There seemed to be some blame in his words.

"I... I went to Ba County to investigate a case and just came back today. Princess, what do you want me to do?" Wuzhan asked.

"Nothing, I just can't see you, sir, so I feel a little flustered and want to talk."

"That medicine can only temporarily control the princess' heart pulse. The princess should rest and not overwork. If the condition worsens, she will be unable to be saved."

Gongsun Yu said softly, "I have taken the medicine you prescribed and I feel much better now. You don't have to worry about me."

"Princess, don't continue with that plan. Leave Xianyang and go to Kuaiji. I will do my best." Gongsun Yu stood up gently, looked at Wuzhan tenderly and said, "Sir, you are talking about me, but isn't your body the same?"

Wuzhan frowned and advised: "The princess is different from me. My body is not something I can decide, but the princess's body is in her own hands. Why are you doing this!"

"Destiny is still the same. We know it is impossible but we still do it."

Wuzhan sighed, "This is different. My mother left me two words before she died: 'live'. I know it is difficult and tiring, and I don't know what value and meaning there is in living like this. But after living for so many years, I gradually understand a lot. If you are alive, you should bear it. If you are alive, there is hope. I won't gamble with my life, because my life is short to begin with, and I will cherish it. My father used his life to exchange for mine so that I can live a few more days in this world, and he didn't expect me to avenge him. If my life doesn't exist, what's the point of revenge? So I give you these two words. The time God has given me is very short. Although living is not easy, I must cherish it. Revenge is fine, but don't gamble with your life. Princess, believe me, go back to Kuaiji, buy land and store grain. Once the Qin State collapses, the princess only needs to start an uprising, and the world will respond. The State of Chu will be restored day and night, and then General Xiang Liang can lead his troops to attack Xianyang. Such revenge is more meaningful than the princess entering the palace alone to assassinate."

After hearing this, Gongsun Yu frowned and remained silent for a long time. "It's not that I don't believe in your talent, but it will be difficult for the Qin State to perish. It will take a long time, and I may not be able to wait until then."

"It won't be long. Even if I die, I will let it perish and clear the way for the princess."

"I will listen to you, sir, and live well. It's getting late. You've been busy all day, so it's time for you to go back and rest."

Wuzhan felt depressed, knowing that Gongsun Yu was just trying to please him. Every time they met, he would leave with hesitation.

……

It was late at night when Wuzhan and Miaoxin returned to the mansion. After learning that Jin Xingzi had already returned, they called Jin Xingzi to the study. Jin Xingzi held up a piece of armor covered with mercury and said, "Just as Little Master expected, they were indeed wearing this kind of old armor, and the weapons they used were all made of bronze. There was mercury on it, and it was also coated with this luminous powder, which is enough to prove that the Lantian incident must have been done by them. The bodies were buried in a valley next to the Dan River. I searched for three days before I smelled the mercury and found the place. Later, I followed Little Master's instructions to check the garrisons in various places and found that several people in each garrison had been transferred away, but where they went was not noted."

Upon hearing this, Wuzhan thought: "Who on earth has such great power to secretly mobilize so many people and kill them secretly? Where did these old weapons come from? Why did they want to destroy the Mercury Chariot? What is their purpose?" Wuzhan seemed to be caught in a whirlpool designed by someone. Countless pairs of eyes were staring at him in secret. If he was not careful, he would drown in it and would not be able to fight back.

……

Early the next morning, Wuzhan sent people to search for where the group of people carrying the coffin yesterday had finally gone, and he took Jin Xingzi and Miaoxin to Meng Mansion to find Meng Yi. Meng Yi had already known about this, but he hadn't been able to find Wuzhan in the past few days and hadn't discussed it together.

After listening to Wuzhan's narration, Meng Yi asked in doubt, "Brother, are you saying that these two incidents were not committed by the remnants of the six kingdoms, but were conspiracies of certain people in the court?"

"It should be OK!" Wuzhan did not tell Meng Yi about Jin Xingzi's discovery, because no one would believe him at this time.

"I think it's impossible. First, no minister in the court would dare to commit such a serious crime. This would lead to the execution of the entire family. Second, the goal of this case is very clear, which is to cause panic in the Qin Dynasty, make the people think that it was done by the undead, publicize the tyranny of the Qin Dynasty, and deceive the people. Brother, are you thinking too complicated?"

"Maybe it's as my second brother said, but if I can't catch the remnants of the six kingdoms, what will be the consequences? If so, it would be better for me to resign now to avoid any charges."

"Don't worry, my dear brother. I am here with His Majesty. Besides, His Majesty seems to admire you, otherwise why would he put the tiger talisman in your hands? Just go ahead and check it out."

Wuzhan sighed, "This time it's definitely not that simple. I'm afraid I will fail to live up to the expectations of the Saint!"

Meng Yi suddenly remembered something and asked, "By the way, I haven't seen the eldest prince for a long time. Do you know where he went?"

"The eldest prince went to Buxian Mountain to look for a precious medicinal herb, the ten thousand year old snow ginseng."

Meng Yi was shocked and said, "Ah! Why would he go to such a faraway foreign country to look for medicinal herbs? Could it be to cure my brother's illness?"

"No, to save a woman."

Hearing this, Meng Yi slapped his thigh and said angrily, "My dear brother, how can you be so foolish? You can't tell anyone to go find the herbs. You must know who will carry the emperor after a hundred years. How can you not stop him and let him go to the dangerous foreign land? If the eldest prince encounters an accident, who can bear the consequences, you or me!"

Wuzhan said, "My second brother taught me a lesson. I was careless for a moment and didn't expect him to go look for her in person. Now I can only send a pigeon to inform my eldest brother in Yanmen and ask him to send someone to look for her."

"This is the only way. How could the eldest prince do such a thing? He would disregard everything for a woman. If Your Majesty knew about this, he would be furious." He hurriedly wrote a note and ordered someone to deliver it to Meng Tian.

(End of this chapter)