At this moment, Zhong Wusi felt as if a thousand small knives were churning inside his abdomen. Although his Dantian was not destroyed, Cui Feng's knee strike had ruptured many of his internal organs, causing massive bleeding. Even though his martial arts were unparalleled, more than half of his skills had been crippled at this moment. Zhong Wusi's eyes were filled with boundless resentment.
Meanwhile, Cui Feng was staring intently at Huang Ruiying. "Why? You have followed me for so many years. Have I ever wronged you?"
Huang Ruiying looked at Cui Feng with a wooden expression. "You have not wronged me. But when I came to you back then, what did you promise me? Yet to this day, where is Xianyu Beifeng's head?"
Cui Feng was taken aback, then sighed. "So it was for this. You've held a grudge all this time about avenging your husband. Xianyu Beifeng is a great general of a nation. Don't you know how difficult it is to kill him? Besides, over the years, I have challenged him to duels as a man of the martial world, but he has never come out. You are well aware of this!"
"Hmph, with your martial arts, how many in the world today are your match? If you wanted to help me, you could have easily snuck into the State of Mu. But why were you unwilling? It was nothing more than wanting me to continue to sell my life for you!" Huang Ruiying, who had been indifferent just a moment ago, suddenly shrieked, the muscles on her face twitching. "Quickly, have Zhang Ming hand over Cui Yuanying!"
Listening to her shrieks, a complex expression flickered in Cui Feng's eyes. "Oh, so the biggest traitor who defected to the Prince of the South was right here with me. It wasn't entirely a problem within the palace!" He finally understood why his plans had gone so awry. All his schemes had been leaked by the person before him. No wonder the enemy's arrangements tonight were so perfect. It was fortunate that he had kept his biggest secret to himself.
At this moment, the red-caped person had also steadied himself. He looked at Cui Feng, but seeing him engaged in a back-and-forth with Huang Ruiying, his aura still as steady as a mountain, he was greatly alarmed. 'Just what realm has this old fellow's martial arts reached? He took a direct hit from me, yet shows no sign of injury. Is he just putting on a brave front? Or was he still hiding his strength just now!'
He was filled with suspicion. Glancing at the struggling Zhong Wusi, he didn't dare to immediately attack Cui Feng again.
This sudden turn of events made everyone who saw it stop what they were doing.
"Prince of the South, it has come to this. Why do you still hide your face? Didn't you already know our plan?" Cui Feng no longer paid attention to Huang Ruiying, but instead looked at the red-caped person. He wanted to confirm the other's identity one last time.
He had known for ten years that the current Son of Heaven had problems with his cultivation. The emperor's martial arts were actually not much inferior to Cui Feng's. But after a mishap in his cultivation, he had consumed a large number of medicinal pills refined by Daoists. Although this had stabilized his cultivation, it had also caused major problems for his body. Though he was still in the prime of his life, he probably only had fifteen or sixteen years left to live.
Thus, he had urgently summoned Cui Feng to the palace. The two had a secret discussion and decided to pass the throne to a certain prince. At the same time, they had predicted that there might be an incident at the succession ceremony over a decade later, because when the current Son of Heaven had ascended the throne, his own blood brother, the man who would later become the Prince of the South, had been extremely resentful. He, too, greatly coveted the supreme throne, but his literary and military talents were inferior to his brother's, and more high-ranking officials in the court supported the Son of Heaven.
So, he had endured it at the time. Although he appeared to be unconcerned with state affairs, spending his days with a group of unorthodox martial artists, practicing with spears and staffs, the current Son of Heaven knew his brother's character too well. He was not one to willingly submit to others. Thus, after securing his throne, he had intended to kill him. But on the eve of his move, the Prince of the South had suddenly disappeared. Despite the emperor casting a wide net, he had failed to find any trace of his brother.
This had forced the Son of Heaven to announce to the public that the Prince of the South had died of illness, while he secretly continued to send people to search for him. The search had lasted for over forty years. The Prince of the South seemed to have truly died, as no one had seen him since.
As the Son of Heaven's health declined, he knew his time was short. But the Prince of the South remained the biggest thorn in his side. That man also had supporters in the court. Although he had suppressed and even secretly eliminated them over the years, he had not been able to uproot the intertwined factions completely, and many still remained.
Thus, he could only devise a plan with Cui Feng, hoping to test whether the Prince of the South was still secretly coveting the throne.
"Hehehe… your plan to pass the throne to the Crown Prince in these few days was just to draw some people out, wasn't it? Now, your wish is granted!" The red-caped person's voice was still hoarse, like grinding gravel. He finally spoke again. A pair of blood-red eyes under the cape stared intently at Cui Feng, but his words still did not admit his identity.
"But we did not expect your pawn to be a subordinate who has followed me for decades!" Cui Feng glanced at Huang Ruiying, who was holding the pale-faced little fatty not far away.
"So, you can stop hiding. The old emperor's true intention is not to pass the throne to the Crown Prince who is still in the capital, but to another prince. That person is the descendant he values most. And it is said that person was disguised and hidden in your manor. General Cui, which of them is the prince waiting to inherit the throne? Cui Yuanyi, or Cui Yuanying? Don't tell me they are both your descendants. That would be boring!"
The red-caped person spoke again slowly. His words stunned everyone who heard them, including Lin Yuxing and Huang Ruiying. They had not known about this. Even Huang Ruiying was just following orders to capture her target and then force them to hand over Cui Yuanying.
'The succession of the throne isn't for the Crown Prince in the capital? And one of them here is a prince from the palace, not a Cui family descendant? But which prince is it?' Many people were rapidly thinking.
'It seems the emperor's inner circle needs a thorough cleansing! Not even Huang Ruiying knew about this. Even Yisheng only knew it was a plan to deal with the Prince of the South!' Cui Feng's expression became grave. When Cui Yuanyi was captured, he had already guessed that the plan might have been leaked, but he had still held onto a sliver of hope. He thought the opponent had just coincidentally captured his own descendant to threaten him. But when the red-caped person said those words, it confirmed that there was truly a problem among the emperor's confidants.
Fortunately, his deployment had a final line of defense, a matter known only to him and the emperor. Although the opponent had figured out their plan, they still couldn't be sure who the prince was.
"General Cui, hand over Cui Yuanying quickly, or this Cui Yuanyi will have to die. I'll count to three. If you don't hand her over, Huang Ruiying, you will kill that little fatty. Then we will surround and capture Cui Yuanying!"
The red-caped person's voice turned icy. He was actually very anxious. The sounds of fighting outside were getting closer. In contrast, the sounds of fighting nearby were gradually subsiding. For this surprise attack to succeed, he had played all his cards. Half of his forces were probably already dead. He couldn't delay here for too long; he had to leave with his men as soon as possible.
But what he wasn't sure of was which one was his royal brother's favorite prince: Cui Yuanyi or Cui Yuanying? Which of the two was the disguised prince? Even he, their own uncle, had never seen this nephew who had been secretly raised by Cui Feng since childhood.
"One…" the red-caped person began to count. Huang Ruiying's fingers dug into Cui Yuanyi's neck. This made it difficult for Cui Yuanyi to breathe, and his whole face turned red. Fear appeared in his eyes.
Cui Feng remained motionless, but his gaze quickly shifted to another side courtyard below.
"Two…" Huang Ruiying's fingertips tightened again. A "gurgle" came from Cui Yuanyi's throat, his face contorted in pain.
"Great General!"
Just then, Cui Feng suddenly shouted. He only uttered two words, but the content of his speech stunned everyone. No one could understand what he meant. (TN: The term used is 大將軍 (Dà Jiāngjūn), which means 'Great General'. The author is likely using it as a code phrase.)
'Great General? What does that mean? Who is he calling?'
'Is there another general of the court lying in ambush nearby?'
…As everyone's minds were in turmoil, the red-caped person also sensed that something was wrong.
"Do it!" He didn't know what Cui Feng was trying to do, but now he had no choice but to kill, regardless of whether Cui Yuanyi was his target or not.
His words made a fierce light flash in Cui Feng's eyes. He sighed inwardly, knowing that Cui Yuanyi probably couldn't be saved.
A ruthless glint flashed in Huang Ruiying's eyes, and her fingers snapped down. But just then, a sigh reached her ears.
"Why must you be entangled with me in this inextricable fate!"
The voice came suddenly, and Huang Ruiying had no idea what it meant. But it was so close that the hair on her body stood on end, and her heart leaped in shock. The next moment, she found her body was completely immobile. Then, as if gently pushed, her whole body fell stiffly from the roof ridge.
By the time this happened, everyone was just beginning to react to the red-caped person's shout.
With a "thud," the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground echoed as the red-caped person's voice trailed off. They looked toward the sound and saw that Huang Ruiying, who had been standing on the roof ridge just a moment ago, had inexplicably fallen into the courtyard while the red-caped person was speaking.
Greatly alarmed, they saw that Huang Ruiying had fallen and broken her head. She lay motionless on the ground, a shocking pool of blood spreading rapidly beneath her.
At this moment, where she had been standing on the roof ridge, a figure suddenly appeared. The person had one hand on Cui Yuanyi's shoulder and was calmly sweeping his gaze over the crowd.
"Zhang… Zhang Ming!"
When they saw the person's face clearly in the moonlight, everyone except Cui Feng wore expressions of utter horror. None of them had seen how this person had gotten onto the roof, nor how he had taken down Huang Ruiying and knocked her unconscious in a single move. Although Huang Ruiying was not the strongest of Cui Feng's generals, her cultivation was undeniably formidable. Otherwise, how could she have escaped from an army of thousands after several failed assassination attempts on Xianyu Beifeng?
Cui Feng's eyes lit up. Even with his cultivation, he had only seen a blur, and then things had become as they were now.
'What brilliant movement skill! His martial arts have advanced yet again!'
At this, everyone who saw this scene stopped what they were doing. For a moment, no one dared to make a move.
Li Yan looked at these people and sighed inwardly. When he had sensed the disturbance here, he had rushed back immediately. A distance of two thousand li was instantaneous for him. He had not wanted to interfere in this matter, but when he saw the look in Cui Feng's eyes as he glanced over, a look of pleading, Li Yan had felt as if it were his own subordinate asking for help in a life-or-death situation.
"Who are you?"
A cold light flared in the red-caped person's eyes. He couldn't understand how things had suddenly changed. He had just captured a target, and in an instant, the person had been rescued.
"You don't need to know who I am. The Imperial Dynasty is at peace. Why must you stir up trouble and subject the common people to the ravages of war again?"
Li Yan's face was devoid of joy or sorrow as he looked indifferently at the red-caped person.