荔枝影院

As the capital was still shaken by the recent events, at the King of Foreign Lands Residence, the soldiers were standing guard, and the lights had burned the entire night.

In the main hall, Wang Chong sat on his raised throne. In front of him were Li Siye, Guo Ziyi, Su Shixuan, Xu Keyi, and his other close subordinates.

Even though he had left the Imperial Palace, Wang Chong was still keeping a watch on the activities within so that he could respond to any unexpected developments.

After some time, a figure staggered in through the entrance. The man’s clothes were tattered and bloodstained, and he had clearly been injured.

“Master!”

Zhang Que cried out in alarm and hastily ran up to support the man.

“I’m fine!”

Old Eagle shook his head and pushed aside Zhang Que’s hand.

“I’m just tired. This blood isn’t mine!”

As Zhang Que stared in shock, Old Eagle took a deep breath, walked over, got down on one knee in front of Wang Chong, and bowed.

“Your Highness! I have carried out my orders and successfully killed Kim U-Seok. Your Highness will not have to worry about this person in the future!”

As Old Eagle spoke, he took out a large bag and placed it on the floor.

Everyone’s eyes brightened upon seeing this bag.

While Kim U-Seok had not been a particularly powerful martial artist, he had inflicted far more damage than many martial artists added together. More importantly, this man had a cunning nature and fled the moment he sensed something was wrong.

They had also searched for him, but they had found no trace. But to their surprise, Old Eagle, who had only recently awoken from his coma, had immediately gone out and killed the dangerous Goguryeon Eagle King.

“Not bad!”

Wang Chong nodded.

“Thank you for your service! You still haven’t recovered, so go back and rest.”

He flicked his finger, sending a golden stream of Stellar Energy into Old Eagle’s body. The Origin Immortal Art’s energy immediately made Old Eagle’s complexion healthier, and his consumed energy and injuries were rapidly restored.

“Thank you, Your Highness!”

Old Eagle sighed in relief as he stood up. The bag Old Eagle had brought, which contained Kim U-Seok’s head, was quickly taken away.

Once Old Eagle was gone, Sword Dragon entered the hall.

Unlike Old Eagle, Young Master Qingyang’s powerful and devoted guard was covered in armor, and there was a mask over his face. The moment he entered the hall, he looked toward Young Master Qingyang, who was standing on Wang Chong’s right side, and then he looked to Wang Chong.

“This general pays respects to Your Highness!”

Sword Dragon strode forward, his armor clattering as he got down on one knee.

“How was it?” Wang Chong sternly said.

“Everything is over. Zhang Zheng was more troublesome than expected. When he saw the battle in the city settling down, he immediately decided to retreat. I pursued him for several dozen li before successfully killing him. In addition, when I returned, the Tongluo Cavalry entered the battle. As the Beiting Protectorate army had no leader, it quickly surrendered,” Sword Dragon respectfully said.

Wang Chong nodded, unsurprised. The wavering of Abusi’s Tongluo Cavalry in this coup, particularly in the early stages where it had even joined the First Prince’s side, would have stirred the Sage Emperor’s anger. Atonement through merit was Abusi’s only choice. And the large number of Beiting Protectorate army soldiers outside the city presented the perfect chance for Abusi and his Tongluo Cavalry.

“Thank you for your service. What were the losses amongst the soldiers?” Wang Chong asked.

Sword Dragon and his men had played a large part in this stratagem of pretending to repair the gallery roads while secretly crossing at Chencang to fool Hou Junji and the Eastern Palace, but this also meant that defending against Zhang Zheng’s army had relied entirely on them.

(TN: ‘Repair the gallery roads while secretly crossing at Chencang’ was a strategy used in the conflict between Chu and Han after the end of the Qin Dynasty. When Liu Bang, founder of the Han Dynasty, withdrew to his territory in modern Sichuan, he destroyed the gallery roads, plank roads built into the mountains. When Xiang Yu, Hegemon of Chu, was busy putting down rebellions, Han Xin, Liu Bang’s general, pretended to repair the gallery roads to put his enemy’s focus on it. Meanwhile, he secretly advanced his forces through the city of Chencang and took the enemy by surprise.)

“Many of our brothers were lost, but fortunately, the walls were tall, and all of them had taken part in the Battle of Talas. Thus, the losses were still acceptable. Our casualties are primarily injured,” Sword Dragon truthfully reported.

Wang Chong nodded. The soldiers that Sword Dragon had led were almost all the former bandits who had been recruited from the Silk Road. These people were top class when it came to running for their lives, digging holes, and laying down tripwires. These were the ones who had laid down the traps hindering Zhang Zheng’s advance, causing his army to arrive an hour later than the Eastern Palace had agreed.

“I’ve already gathered all the doctors in the army and purchased large quantities of medicine. All these should have arrived already. In addition, Zhang Zheng’s head should be delivered to the Fifth Prince in the palace as I previously ordered!” Wang Chong said.

Zhang Zheng was one of the main culprits behind the Rebellion of the Three Princes. Wang Chong was already a King and could rise no higher, so Zhang Zheng would provide him no boon. In contrast, Li Heng was in dire need of battlefield achievement.

Wang Chong gave out another set of orders, and everyone quickly dispersed, leaving Wang Chong by himself.

After some time, a Golden Guard rushed into the room and got down on one knee. “Reporting! Your Highness, the Fifth Prince has arrived!”

“There’s no need. I already said that I could announce myself.” A voice came from behind the guard, and the Fifth Prince soon walked in, accompanied by Li Jingzhong.

“You’re here,” Wang Chong indifferently said, apparently having expected Li Heng’s visit.

“You’re dismissed!”

Wang Chong gestured at the Golden Guard, and the man quickly turned around and left.

Li Heng quickly realized something and asked, “You were waiting?”

Wang Chong smiled.

“Given what happened last night, I would find it far stranger if you didn’t have any questions to ask me.”

Besides the Sage Emperor and Wang Chong, Li Heng had been one of Li Ying’s top targets in the Rebellion of the Three Princes. And while Wang Chong had planned out the night’s events, only a scant few knew the entire plan.

As one of the participants, Li Heng inevitably would have many questions, and it was only natural that he was impatient to learn the truth.

Li Heng smiled and walked over.

“You played a part in Imperial Father’s awakening, right?” Li Heng anxiously said. As he spoke, Li Jingzhong stared at Wang Chong.

In this coup, the most critical factor was unquestionably the Sage Emperor’s condition. The Sage Emperor’s attack had left everyone awed, and at that moment, First Prince Li Ying had been totally defeated.

Even though many people believed that the Sage Emperor was uninjured and that all of this had been a trap, Li Heng sensed that things were not as simple as they seemed. If the First Prince had not been sure that the Sage Emperor was ill and confused, he would have never had the guts to start a rebellion.

Li Heng’s intuition told him that his father could have been so energetic because Wang Chong was involved.

When it came to the truth of this matter, only the Sage Emperor and Wang Chong knew what was going on.

Wang Chong smiled at their expectant gazes and satisfied their curiosity. “Heh, I played a small role, but in the end, it depended mostly on the Sage Emperor himself!”

“As expected!”

The two were elated to hear this.

“But how did you manage to do it? I know that you used a disguising art on Young Master Qingyang, but Taiji Palace was heavily guarded, with First Imperial Brother’s soldiers completely surrounding it. And before that, neither I nor any official could meet with Imperial Father no matter how hard we tried.

“Moreover, the area within one thousand feet of Taiji Palace is controlled entirely by Imperial Father’s soldiers. Those Dragon Guards and True Dragon Sentinels are all powerful and emotionless. Not even when First Imperial Brother was the regent was he allowed to approach, much less anyone else. How did you manage to get in? And without a single person noticing?” Li Heng said in disbelief.

When he arrived at the Imperial Palace and saw Wang Chong exiting Taiji Palace, he had been stunned, and this question had been lingering in his mind this entire time.

Taiji Palace was the residence of the Sage Emperor and was the most heavily guarded place in the realm. If Wang Chong had tried to force his way in, the First Prince would have immediately noticed, but it was now obvious that he had gotten in without anyone from the Eastern Palace noticing.

Just how Wang Chong had managed to get in was still an inexplicable riddle.

Wang Chong smiled as he glanced around the hall. Li Heng probably wasn’t the only one with this question. Everyone, even the imprisoned First Prince, was probably just as confused.

“Heh, it’s actually not as difficult as you imagine. It’s really no secret. I just walked in,” Wang Chong indifferently said.

“Impossible!” Li Jingzhong blurted out before Li Heng could speak. If it had really been that simple, Li Heng would have walked into Taiji Palace long ago.

“In this identity, I naturally can’t, but if I were Eunuch Gao, then things are different.”

Wang Chong faintly smiled.

“Eunuch Gao?”

The master and servant both froze in shock, but suddenly, they had a flash of insight. Li Heng shivered in understanding.

“You… Wang Chong… you mean to say that you disguised yourself as Eunuch Gao and got through the Dragon Guards and True Dragon Sentinels?”

Upon seeing Wang Chong nod, Li Heng felt like a storm had erupted in his mind.