Green Mountain
Chapter 269 - 212, Assassination

Chapter 269: 212, Assassination

"Young man, come on, think hard, what exactly is the missing verse?"

"It’s so rare to come across such a beautiful piece, yet you’ve forgotten a verse, it’s going to keep us up all night."

The literary men chattered back and forth, already having tossed the incident of ’betraying Prince Jing’ to the back of their minds, insisting on dragging Chen Ji into recalling the incomplete poetry.

To them, a good poem with a missing part was like a beauty’s face half-veiled, unbearable to the itch of curiosity.

The Broken Formation, appeared to be a ’Heroic Poem’ of a General’s gallant heart laid bare, yet it told of frustration and ’regret’ at unfulfilled ambitions. When drunk, he seemed to revert back to that young General, with the cold gleam of swords flashing in the tent, and the unending calls of bugles echoing outside.

Awakening from the drunken stupor, he found no soliders or battlefield by his side. The bow unstrung, hung high, leaving only whitened hair.

How lamentable, how regrettable.

Zhang Zhuo and Zhang Xia looked towards Chen Ji from within the crowd.

Only father and daughter knew that after Chen Ji left Prince Jing with this poem, he could not write another half-line of poetry for the rest of his life.

Zhang Zhuo stepped forward, patted his shoulder and whispered, "You’ve had it hard."

Chen Ji smiled, "It’s nothing."

Zhang Zhuo’s eyes shifted as he asked, "Have you truly forgotten a verse, or can’t the poem be written due to some taboo?"

Chen Ji whispered back, "I’ve truly forgotten."

Chen Ji hadn’t lied. He was never good at the literary arts, and the verses he had provided the Princely Heir had always been piecemeal; it was already challenging to remember most of this poem. Before writing, he was even afraid of composing the wrong sentence or misremembering one.

Indeed, he had forgotten.

Right then, General Wang stepped forward and said coldly to the crowd, "Lord Zhang, may I have a word alone with Chen Ji?"

Zhang Zhuo stood his ground, "No. General Wang, you’ve been rash to pin blame on Chen Ji. How do you intend to account for this?"

Chen Ji grabbed Zhang Zhuo’s arm, "Lord Zhang, please let me have a few words with General Wang."

Zhang Zhuo looked at him, then turned and walked aside with a wave of his sleeves, while Xiao Man and Zhang Xia also stepped back.

General Wang came closer, now just a foot away from Chen Ji, and narrowed his eyes as he spoke in a low voice, "Quick-witted brat."

Chen Ji smiled, "You flatter me."

General Wang spoke gravely, "We both know what the Blood Letter contains. What do you think the Spy Department’s reaction would be when they hear what was said today? And when everyone learns that the Blood Letter doesn’t contain the verses you wrote, do you think you can escape the infamy?"

Chen Ji glanced down silently.

Blood Letter?

Now, the Spy Department had only proclaimed that Prince Jing committed suicide out of fear for his crimes, and the investigation was ongoing. As to what stage the investigation had reached and what evidence they had obtained, they kept silent about it all.

The Spy Department had originally planned to use Consort Yun to fill in the gaps, to ensure Prince Jing Mansion was implicated in the conspiracy against the Jing Dynasty, but now the key witness, Official Liu, had hung himself, and Princess Consort Jing had died against a column, while Consort Yun had vanished without a trace, as if she had evaporated.

All the evidence had become fragmented.

Bai Long did have Prince Jing’s Blood Letter, but its content could only prove that after being falsely imprisoned, Prince Jing had attempted to orchestrate a prison break with the help of the Thousand-year Army to save himself. Even if this Blood Letter were to be exposed, in the eyes of the Civil Servant Group, it bore no direct link to conspiracy; clearly, it was Prince Jing acting in self-defense after being persecuted by the Eunuch Party.

That’s why Bai Long kept the Blood Letter hidden, as if it never existed, and the case of Prince Jing’s conspiracy remained unsolved.

This was also why Bai Long was capable of saving Commandery Princess for Chen Ji, preventing her from being executed.

There was a moment when Chen Ji wondered why such a meticulous man like Bai Long would make so many mistakes in convicting Prince Jing. At the time of Official Liu’s suicide and Princess Consort Jing’s death, Bai Long had been present – why hadn’t he saved these two key witnesses?

Was it intentional on Bai Long’s part, or had he truly overlooked it amidst everything else?

And if Bai Long had indeed left the case unresolved on purpose, what was he aiming to attain?

As for the Blood Letter...

As long as Bai Long still needed Chen Ji to remain undercover in the Chen family, he would cover for him.

Today’s greatest oversight by General Wang was not knowing that Chen Ji had pledged allegiance to Bai Long and become a spy for the Spy Department, a Hai Dongqing in their ranks.

Chen Ji looked up at General Wang, "General Wang, better take care of yourself. Those who betray their masters for glory never meet a good end."

General Wang let out a cold laugh, "You youngsters are fond of tough talk. Useless, I’ll spare you for a bit longer."

With that, he turned and left, taking his seat in the main hall.

Xiao Man finally dared to approach, muttering quietly, "My Lord, he’s slandered you, are we just going to let it go?"

Chen Ji smiled helplessly, "What else can we do? He’s a fifth-rank General of the Thousand-year Army, and I’m just a bastard of the Chen Mansion. What can I do to him?"

Xiao Man was indignant, "He thinks he’s special just because he’s a fifth-rank General? I dared to defy him, so why are you always being bullied..."

During the banquet, Zhang Zhuo seemed to lighten the mood, endlessly coaxing General Wang to drink more, and ended up getting himself thoroughly drunk. As the evening came, seeing General Wang looking at Zhang Zhuo, who was slumped over the table, he unsteadily rose to his feet and, with the help of armored soldiers, he boarded the carriage outside the door.

He took one last look back at the depths of Zhang Mansion, the guests all gone, as if nothing had happened, just like always, ordinary and serene.

General Wang settled into the carriage, exhaling a breath reeking of alcohol, and his drunken expression vanished, "Return to camp."

The carriage slowly left, escorted by more than ten armored soldiers of the Thousand-year Army.

...

...

The sun set in the west, as if the last thread of warmth had been drawn from the world. Under the blanket of night, the roofs and pavilions stretched endlessly, one by one, their lights gradually extinguished.

Chen Ji sat silently on a gray rooftop, with Wu Yun sitting beside him, ears perked up.

Under the moonlight, the streets of Luocheng City were deserted. Eaves curled into flying corners, rippling like black waves into the distance, as if only a man and a cat remained in this world.

Wu Yun meowed, "Xiao Man was sulking at Mingquan Garden all afternoon today. Listening to your conversation, it seems General Wang wanted to splash dirty water on you at the banquet, blaming you for betraying Prince Jing?"

Chen Ji hummed a confirmation, "Yes."

Wu Yun pondered for a moment, "Why didn’t you expose him?"

"There’s no need," Chen Ji said calmly. "Let him revel in his verbal triumph. Regardless of his thousand words today, I can take them all, as long as he is willing to leave the Thousand-year Army’s camp."

These days, General Wang had been cooped up inside the Thousand-year Army’s camp, surrounded by thousands of soldiers. Trying to assassinate him was harder than reaching the heavens.

Before Chen Ji left Luocheng City, he had waited for today’s opportunity—the only one he would get.

Wu Yun meowed, "They’re coming."

The sound of horse hooves and carriage wheels approached from afar, as the Thousand-year Army escorted General Wang towards the South City Gate.

Chen Ji pulled out two Emei daggers from his waist, "I’ll go assassinate him; you wait for the right moment in the dark. Remember, Wang must die by the Emei dagger."

Wu Yun arched his back and stretched lazily, "I understand."

The carriage drew closer, the armored soldiers of the Thousand-year Army scanning their surroundings vigilantly, their gazes sharp as blades.

However, at that moment, Wu Yun’s fur suddenly bristled, "Meow!"

Chen Ji looked into the distance, aided by the moonlight, and saw a black mist nimbly leaping across rooftops—a cunning gazelle galloping across the plains, traversing the undulating roofs without hindrance, as if stepping on clouds.

A sheep’s body and a human face, feet upon black auspicious clouds, with a giant mouth across its chest and belly tightly shut.

The Taotie!

It was the first time Chen Ji had seen the Taotie Wu Yun had mentioned. Had he not seen it devour a human, he wouldn’t have found the spirit monster particularly terrifying.

However, why had it appeared here?

His gaze sought the individual behind the Taotie, but as far as he could see, there was no place for anyone to hide, nor could he confirm if that person had even come here.

In the next moment, the Taotie accelerated along the rooftops, chasing after the Thousand-year Army from behind.

The black figure leapt from the roof, plunging down.

The Thousand-year Army’s soldiers rode on, darkness eclipsing the moonlight above them. By the time they looked up, it was too late.

With a thundering crash, the Taotie hit the carriage dead on, shattering the wooden vehicle into splinters, filling the air with sawdust.

Caught off guard, General Wang was hurled from the carriage, smashing against a roadside brick wall before tumbling to the ground.

Chen Ji murmured, "Impressive!"

Down the street, the soldiers of the Thousand-year Army roared, "Protect the General!"

A dozen soldiers rode forward, shielding General Wang. However, to their surprise, the Taotie didn’t continue to fight; instead, it turned tail and fled.

It was like children fighting with each other: one would kick, gain an advantage, and run away—a kick for a kick.

The creature effortlessly leapt onto the roof, its feet tapping lightly on the gray tiles as it disappeared into the night. It was as if its visit was a mere caprice, and now that it was over, it could happily return home.

Wu Yun exclaimed, "What on earth!"

Chen Ji and Wu Yun lay on the rooftop, speechless, still trying to make sense of the Taotie’s actions.

Moreover, the creature had first swallowed an Executive Officer who was monitoring Chen Ji, and then it attacked General Wang’s carriage.

To say that this had nothing to do with Chen Ji was impossible.

Wu Yun meowed, "What now?"

Chen Ji calmly replied, "Keep killing. Take his life while he’s sick. Remember, not a single one who has seen you in action must be left alive."

However, just as the man and the cat were about to swoop down to attack, they saw another figure rapidly approaching from the distance. The figure was dressed in black, thin but swift as lightning in its movements.

The person in black wasted no time, as if the attack had been rehearsed a thousand times over; upon seeing the Thousand-year Army, they plunged from the rooftop.

One of the soldiers drew his waist knife to strike, but the figure in black ducked low, sliding under the belly of the horse, avoiding entanglement with the soldier, aiming only for General Wang’s life!

Another soldier saw this and furiously spurred his horse forward. The steed reared up, hooves thundering down towards the path of the figure in black: "Die!"

In the blink of an eye, the person in black retreated, drawing two Emei daggers from their waist. One dagger flew from their hand, slipping through the gap between the soldier and the horse, lodging in General Wang’s shoulder!

Amidst General Wang’s muffled grunt, Wu Yun glanced at the remaining Emei dagger in the attacker’s hand, then at the two daggers in Chen Ji’s hands...

Chen Ji had intended to pin the murder of General Wang on this person, yet he had never imagined the actual perpetrator would come to do the deed himself!