Tang Dynasty Puppet Doctor

Chapter 84: Dungeon Alone
There is no moon tonight, only a few sparse stars dotted in the night sky.

Murong Huan sat on the eaves of an attic in Princess Taiping's mansion, looking at the Wanxiang Temple not far away.

She didn't know if it was an illusion, but Li Linghuan appeared in front of her again.

"You must be feeling very helpless right now, right? This is the helplessness of being powerless and at the bottom of society. And for Xiao Muchen, when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. No matter how dazzling he was before, no matter how many people respected, feared, and fawned over him, once he lost power, countless people would kick him when he was down, and only a very few would come to his aid.

Therefore, all those so-called Zhuangzi and Laozi doctrines, and talks about inaction, are empty words. When you live in this world, you can only do everything you want to do if you hold power firmly in your own hands.

"Murong Huan, you still haven't figured out what you want?"

Murong Huan said subconsciously: "Right now... I just want to save him! And then implement our plan."

"Then go ahead! Now that you've made your decision, don't hesitate!"

Murong Huan nodded and immediately took out a bamboo tube in her hand. After releasing a tree of sparks, Xie Zi'e rushed to her side.

"Follow the plan I mentioned earlier and cover for me!"

"Well, rest assured, young lady, I won't let you down!" Xie Zi'e said, then worriedly changed the subject. "But, do you want to go and rescue him alone? Notices all over the city today say that Xiao Zhongcheng is currently in a secret cell in Xiuwenfang. This is clearly bait, trying to lure you in."

“A fisherman is not necessarily a true fisherman; he may become a fisherman.”

After Murong Huan finished speaking, he suddenly called out:
"Xueli, lead the way!"

A furry little white fox jumped out from somewhere, using its four legs to move very agilely. It suddenly jumped into Murong Huan's arms, making squeaking sounds, as if asking her decision again and again.

"I've made up my mind. Take me with you! The longer he stays there, the more danger he'll have, right?"

……

"Lord Zuo Xiang, something bad has happened. The Imperial Censor asked me to pass on a message to you, Lord Zuo Xiang."

In the dungeon of the Inner Guard Palace, a secret guard who was originally guarding outside the prison door hurried in and reported to the King of Wei.

"What?" Wu Chengsi frowned and asked unhappily.

"The Imperial Censor has apprehended Su Qing, the young master of the Su family. According to Su Qing's confession, the young lady named Murong Huan went to see him today and said something..."

"What are you talking about?" The man in black seemed impatient and asked sternly.

The secret guard then replied, "Her original words were, 'I'm going to expose their past and tell them to be careful and protect their golden nest!'"

Xiao Muchen couldn't help but laugh after hearing this. King Wei then had a bad feeling in his heart and asked sternly, "Why are you laughing? Could it be that the red thread told you something?"

"What did she say?"

The ghost-faced man in black also took advantage of his power and shouted, "Speak quickly!"

Xiao Muchen then raised his eyes to look at them and replied, "Hong Xian didn't say anything, but you have overlooked one thing, that is Murong Huan's hypnosis. Regardless of whether Hong Xian spoke or not, we have already seen from her memory the things you covered up."

After a pause, he emphasized his tone and continued, "That's the White Horse Temple and the money house!"

When the King of Wei heard the last few words, he became extremely upset and stood up from his chair in a flash.

"You actually knew about this?" He said, then turned to the man in black, "And you still say your disciple won't betray me?"

If the saint knew the existence of the "underground bank" kind of transaction place, Wu Chengsi would not be able to escape the crime even if he was eloquent!
Thinking of this, he turned to the man in black with a panicked and fierce look: "Kill him immediately!"

"Wait!" Wu Lingyue stopped Xiao Muchen again. "Father, since Xiao Muchen dared to say this, it means he's not the only one who knows this secret. Maybe someone is already investigating this place. Father, why don't you go and see if this underground bank is safe?"

Wu Lingyue's words immediately reminded him, and thinking about Murong Huan's words, he thought to himself: Could it be that the bitch has already taken people to that place?
"go!"

He suddenly gave an order and hurried out of the dungeon with the ghost-faced man in black.

Wu Lingyue felt like a taut string finally snapping. She turned to look at Xiao Muchen, her eyes filled with helplessness and resentment. "Why are you saying all this? You know very well that the more secrets you reveal, the harder my father will be to punish you."

"Then, do you know about what he did?" Xiao Muchen asked. Wu Lingyue's expression darkened, and after a long moment, she replied, "I didn't know either. But ever since that mysterious man started hanging around him, I've been curious and followed them around, even to that underground bank."

"Then what did you see?"

"That's just a place where people buy and sell official positions, peddle illegal salt, and raise skinny horses..."

"Smuggling salt? Skinny horses? So they're training those poor women and selling them like prostitutes or livestock, right?"

Hearing Xiao Muchen's angry voice, Wu Lingyue suddenly woke up and widened his eyes in surprise.

"Xiao Muchen, were you trying to trick me just now? You don't even know where the underground bank is? You don't even know what's going on there, right?"

"Yes, I wasn't sure, but now I am sure!"

"You...are you really not afraid that we will kill you?"

Wu Lingyue also became a little panicked, but she couldn't stop the extreme pain in her heart. As the daughter of the Wu family, she should put the interests of the Wu family first, but when facing this man who made her heart beat for the first time, she couldn't control her soft heart.

If her father really wanted to kill him, she didn't know what choice she would make?

Just when she was feeling confused and upset, a flute sound came from somewhere.

The sound of the flute is like crying and complaining, soft and melodious, like the whisper of a lover, like the sound of broken jade and golden bells, making people feel as if they are in a dream and in another world.

When Xiao Muchen heard the sound of the flute, he couldn't help but feel happy, but then he became a little worried.

There were guards everywhere in the secret prison. It was originally like an iron wall that no one could easily enter. But at this moment, the lingering sound of the flute made these guards feel sleepy, especially in this sleepiness, they would think of the gentleness and cute smiles and whispers of their wives.

No one can resist the comfort and enjoyment brought by sweet dreams, and these guards are no exception.

After the flute music lasted for a cup of tea, all the guards became sleepy and fell to the ground.

Immediately afterwards, Xiao Muchen heard footsteps, one step after another, until they were approaching here.

Until the flute sound stopped, Xueli ran over first, and then Murong Huan, dressed in a black robe and a hood, appeared in front of him.

While Wu Lingyue was also in a state of soul separation, Murong Huan walked straight up to Xiao Muchen and said, "Don't preach to me. Are you going with me voluntarily, or do you want me to knock you out and take you away?"

Xiao Muchen smiled, knowing that saying more would be useless, and only replied: "Of course I will go with you!"

"it is good!"

Murong Huan nodded and was about to untie the chains on him when Xiao Muchen suddenly shouted, "Be careful!"

Murong Huan, sensing the approaching murderous aura, also attacked with lightning speed, deflecting Wu Lingyue's sword with the sharp blade hidden in his bamboo flute.

She turned and looked at Wulingyue.

Wulingyue pointed his sword at her.

"You can't take him with you. If he leaves, he'll become a true criminal of the imperial court. That would be a direct admission of his treason. Then my father will ask the Saint to issue a warrant for your arrest. You won't be able to escape the Luoyang Divine Capital. The charges will be proven, and he'll be dead for sure!"

"Wouldn't he have died if he stayed here?" Murong Huan asked back, "Just now, didn't you have even the slightest thought of killing him to silence him?"

Wu Lingyue's expression changed, and he sneered, "It seems you don't understand him at all. A gentleman cherishes his body, like a peacock cherishes its feathers. For Zicheng, reputation and integrity are more important than life and death! Yet you want to make him bear the accusation of treason, Murong Huan, you are simply not worthy of him!"

"If people are dead, what's the point of keeping a good name? Wuling Yue, do you know what death means?"

Wuling Yue was stunned.

"That means this person will never exist again. No matter what he did, no matter what past you had with him, it will all be in vain. To me, reputation and integrity are nothing. I only want living people. Only when people are alive can they talk about true reputation. I will restore his reputation!"

Wuling Yue was completely stunned: What kind of nonsense is this? Shouldn't reputation be the most important thing in life?
At this moment, Murong Huan's voice came to her ears again, saying, "Get out of the way! Don't force me to kill you!"

(End of this chapter)