Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Chapter 1080 – Blind Chess

Shang Xingzhou asked, “Why is it him?”

Xu Yourong answered, “Because he will be the new sovereign.”

This battle had been triggered by the alliance between her and Yuren. If Shang Xingzhou was the one to win at the end, the emperor would have to be changed.

Prince Chen Liu was the best candidate, and he was the one that Shang Xingzhou had already chosen.

Shang Xingzhou did not deny this. He calmly said, “Correct, he is the best amongst all the rest of Emperor Taizong’s descendants, although he is inferior to His Majesty.”

Xu Yourong asked, “I wish to know, are you really willing to give up on His Majesty, even though you spent twenty-some years pouring your heart and soul into raising him?”

Shang Xingzhou was quiet for a while, then he said, “If His Majesty truly was convinced by you, then I must give him up.”

Xu Yourong asked, “Did you ever think that my visit to the palace last night might have been a feint?”

Shang Xingzhou replied, “His Majesty did not write a letter to Luoyang.”

Many days had already passed, enough to write a very sincere letter.

But he had not received one.

Xu Yourong understood his meaning.

This was precisely the result she had wanted to see.

Thus, Prince Chen Liu had to die.

If he died, then even if Shang Xingzhou did win this battle, who would become emperor?

Those ambitious princes of the Chen clan would naturally drag the entire Human race into chaos.

What meaning would there be in Shang Xingzhou’s continuing to fight this battle?

It was clearly early spring, but the wind was chilly and seemed devoid of warmth.

The Mausoleum of Books was covered in green trees, but the bushes lining the Divine Path were covered in dust and appeared listless.

Shang Xingzhou looked beyond the Mausoleum of Books, inspecting the several plumes of dust in the distance. He knew that the black-armored cavalry were still an hour away, but his expression remained easygoing.

“He is an outstanding youth. It’s not easy to kill him.”

“I’ve known him since I was little. I know that he’s extremely cautious and always leaves a path of retreat whenever he does anything.”

“Yes, the aspect in which he is still far inferior to Emperor Taizong is that at several crucial moments, he lacks the courage to directly face blood.”

Shang Xingzhou turned to Xu Yourong and said, “And you have found his escape path?”

Xu Yourong softly confirmed, “Correct.”

A gentle wind blew through the streets. Those buildings burdened by the dust of history had learned long ago how to remain unmoved by so-called major events.

The princely estates along the Road of Peace were extremely quiet, perhaps because their masters had all gone to the Mausoleum of Books.

Prince Chen Liu had not. He remained, sitting in the reception hall of the estate and quietly sipping tea.

Glimpses of the experts of the princely estate could be seen outside the window.

The tea in his porcelain bowl gradually cooled, just like the fingers he used to hold the bowl.

He gently placed the tea bowl back on the table and subtly glanced at the base of the window.

The ground there was paved with gray bricks, one of them a little glossier than the rest.

His path of retreat was not the rear gate. On the contrary, in times like these, the rear gate was often the most dangerous location.

The path of retreat that Prince Chen Liu had arranged for himself was right beneath that brick, a tunnel that led to a canal of the Luo River.

Starting from the previous dynasty, the Road of Peace had been the residence of the powerful nobility. Those nobles, lusting for power and fearful of surprises, had dug out countless tunnels.

After Zhou Tong took power over the Department for Purging Officials, he had dug out even more tunnels.

Those tunnels were as dense as a spider web. Other than himself, no one could understand them.

……

……

“There’s also Mo Yu.”

Shang Xingzhou said to Xu Yourong, “So-called paths of retreat truly are liable to become dead ends.”

Xu Yourong replied, “Yes, so Prince Chen Liu will die.”

……

……

Three years ago, when the capital was shrouded in snow, Chen Changsheng killed his way into the alley of the Northern Military Department and Zhou Tong fled into the prison underground.

While he was speaking with Xue He, he was poisoned by Zhexiu.

With great difficulty, he managed to escape through the tunnels to his external residence on the Road of Peace, but he was unable to throw off Zhexiu’s pursuit.

But what truly made him despair was that beautiful palace maiden who had been waiting in his external residence the entire time.

Mo Yu knew everything about him, whether it was the external residence on the Road of Peace or the extremely complicated network of tunnels.

Today, people were also waiting at the end of that tunnel for Prince Chen Liu.

Two Daoist nuns were waiting for him.

If one went under the fake mountain in the Prince of Louyang’s estate, they would find a tunnel that turned west.

The tunnel that led from the Prince of Xiang’s estate to the canal of the Luo River intersected with this tunnel.

Two Daoist nuns sat cross-legged at this intersection.

One nun had a serene expression and appeared rather delicate.

The other had steely brows raised in anger while thunderbolts raged in her eyes.

It was the two most senior and most powerful martial grandaunts of South Stream Temple, Huai Ren and Huai Shu.

……

……

“I’ve always wanted to know why you had Huai Ren and Huai Shu enter the capital…”

Shang Xingzhou looked at Xu Yourong and said, “It turned out to be in this place.”

Xu Yourong realized that she had not been able to hide the arrival of her two martial aunts from Shang Xingzhou. She said, “Since he is the first to be killed, the preparations must not be lacking.”

Shang Xingzhou shook his head. “In my view, this assassination cannot succeed.”

……

……

“Please, have some tea.”

Prince Chen Liu took up the tea pot, poured four cups of tea, and lightly pushed them forward. His manners were impeccable.

The tea in his bowl was cold, but the tea in the cups had to be hot, because this symbolized respect.

Four Daoists in blue sat across from him, their eyes reserved and their appearances ordinary. However, the occasional flap of their sleeves would be accompanied by the sudden appearance of sword intent. They were clearly of unusual cultivation level.

This was especially the case for the white-haired old Daoist. He appeared rather wooden and taciturn, but he gave off an aura of unfathomable strength.

Only a few people were aware that while Shang Xingzhou was in the capital’s Orthodox Academy and then hiding in Xining, Luoyang’s Monastery of Eternal Spring was under the management of this old Daoist.

Prince Chen Liu had only learned of this fact today. At the same time, he learned that the venerable Daoist’s followers were far stronger than he had imagined.

With this old Daoist half a step from the Divine, the three other Daoists from the Monastery of Eternal Spring, and the many experts of the princely estate at his side, he suddenly felt like he had been too cautious.

Of course, if something unforeseen happened in the Mausoleum of Books and the other side really did end up with the advantage, he would still have to leave.

Prince Chen Liu’s gaze once more fell on that gray brick under the window.

……

……

“You placed your strongest person at Prince Chen Liu’s side. It looks like you really do value him.”

Shang Xingzhou said nothing, but Xu Yourong understood his intentions. She indifferently added, “Then his death is even more imperative.”

Shang Xingzhou slightly raised his brows in surprise, because Xu Yourong’s expression remained serene, not changing in the slightest.

She was not feigning calm. With the chess game at this point, there was no meaning or need to conceal one’s emotions.

Xu Yourong was truly very calm.

Because she was extremely sure that Prince Chen Liu would die today.

……

……

The Prince of Xiang’s estate was very quiet. The impassive experts watched their surroundings, occasionally adjusting their positions, their feet making no noise.

In the garden behind the reception hall, two array masters were paying close attention to a sand table, prepared to adjust the defenses at any time.

A man dressed in blue stood at the base of the wall, his shoulders drooped and his eyes half-closed in apparent sleep.

It was a very ordinary man, and the sword loosely tied to his waist was also ordinary.

But those who knew this man knew that this sword was tied so loosely to make it easier to unsheathe. The man drooped his shoulders for the same reason.

The former was his habit ever since he had started his career, while the latter was something he had learned after meeting Wang Po in Xunyang City.

From his posture to his breathing to his clothes, every detail was to make it easier for him to unsheathe his sword.

Thus, in the entire world, he was the one that could strike the fastest with the sword.