Chapter 425: It Really Does Look Like Niu Youdao's Handwriting

They had only just reached a decision amid their hesitation when a knock sounded from outside. Lan Ruoting went over and opened the door.

Bai Yao stood beside the guards outside. Calmly, he said, "Mr. Lan, prepare to depart."

His gaze swept over Lan Ruoting's face. Lan Ruoting had not yet washed away the dust of the road.

"All right!" Lan Ruoting answered with a smile.

Bai Yao stepped forward and glanced at Shang Chaozong and Shang Shuqing inside. He said nothing more, turned, and left. He knew more or less what his sect intended to do with these people.

Lan Ruoting gave the guards a look, stepped back into the room, and closed the door again. The three briefly discussed the matter, then each wiped the dust from their faces with a damp cloth before going outside together. The three had barely stepped out of the relay-station room when Peng Youzai and the others emerged behind them. Shang Chaozong walked over and blocked Peng Youzai's path. Peng Youzai stopped. The group behind him stopped as well.

All of them looked at Shang Chaozong standing in their way. He might be the dignified Commandery Prince Yongping, but a lofty coldness lurked in their eyes, contempt buried in their bones.

Peng Youzai smiled. "Does Your Highness need something?"

Shang Chaozong said nothing. He unfolded the enclosed letter and handed it over. One of Peng Youzai's brows lifted slightly. He had no idea what this was about. He slowly reached out and accepted the letter, scrutinized Shang Chaozong briefly from head to toe, and only then lowered his eyes to the page. The contents were simple enough to take in at a glance. The moment he understood what the letter said, especially when he saw the three characters of the signature—Niu Youdao—Peng Youzai's brows twitched violently.

Under circumstances like these, that name carried considerable weight for him. It exerted pressure. Niu Youdao had vanished without a trace and still had not reappeared, yet now his name had surfaced on this sheet of paper. The name plucked at the heartstring Peng Youzai had kept taut because of this man all along. Expressionless, Peng Youzai raised his eyes and met Shang Chaozong's gaze.

"What does Your Highness mean by showing me this?"

"I only just saw it myself," Shang Chaozong replied.

That much was true. Peng Youzai looked again at the ink. One glance was enough to tell it had not been written recently.

"Where did it come from?"

"I don't know. After we entered the room, it was already lying on the table."

Peng Youzai immediately turned his head and swept his gaze over the surroundings. He saw no suspicious person. He casually passed the letter to Chen Tingxiu beside him and gave Chen Tingxiu a look. Chen Tingxiu lowered his head and read the letter. His brows jumped as well. Then he passed it to the other elders and quickly strode away.

Peng Youzai withdrew his gaze from Shang Chaozong. Without another word, he turned and went back inside the relay station, the others following behind him. As far as Sect Leader Peng was concerned, there were only two possibilities.

Either Shang Chaozong and the others had forged this, or events had happened exactly as Shang Chaozong claimed and they truly had found the letter after entering the room. If it was the latter, and if Niu Youdao truly had delivered the letter, then the problem was enormous.

With Tianyu Sect maintaining such tight security, Niu Youdao had nevertheless been able to slip a letter beneath their noses with ease, and not merely anywhere, but into a room that had only temporarily been assigned to Shang Chaozong.

What did that mean?

The implications were grave. Before long, Tianyu Sect's disciples began moving. Standing in the relay-station courtyard, Shang Chaozong and the others watched as every official and attendant at the station was placed under control. The minor functionaries trembled in fear, completely unaware of what had happened. Shang Chaozong and Lan Ruoting exchanged a glance. Both understood. Tianyu Sect was probably going to investigate everyone in the relay station. This had been Lan Ruoting's idea. He had deliberately applied pressure to Tianyu Sect.

Lan Ruoting understood that if the letter had supposedly come from anyone else, Tianyu Sect probably would not have believed it. But Tianyu Sect had experienced Niu Youdao's methods firsthand. His ability to survive one storm after another in the State of Qi and return with even more warhorses than promised was proof enough...

Inside one room, Peng Youzai stood before the window with his hands clasped behind his back, staring coldly through the open frame. No one knew what he was thinking. Several elders passed the letter around in turn. True or false, its contents weighed heavily on them. If Jinzhou truly intended to attack Nanzhou, Tianyu Sect might face annihilation.

After stirring up something this large, if Tianyu Sect failed to hold Nanzhou and could not control the province, it would lose all value in the eyes of the three major sects. The court of the State of Yan would certainly seize the opportunity to pressure those three sects into exterminating Tianyu Sect. That consequence was not one Tianyu Sect could bear.

"Junior Brother Feng, look at the letter again," Peng Youzai said slowly, his back still turned at the window.

The letter returned to Feng Entai's hands.

Feng Entai choked for a moment, then could not help asking, "Sect Leader, you don't suspect I had something to do with this letter, do you? Yes, Niu Youdao and I are sworn brothers, but I wouldn't go so far as to turn my elbow outward and betray my own side..."

"You're thinking too much." Peng Youzai turned and cut off his explanation. He lifted his chin toward the letter in Feng Entai's hands. "I know what kind of man you are. You would not betray the sect. I'm asking you to look again because you know Niu Youdao well. See whether this is his handwriting."

So that was it. Feng Entai understood, and the weight hanging in his heart eased.

He raised the letter and studied it carefully for a while before saying hesitantly, "I've seen Niu Youdao's handwriting before. His script has a very distinct style of its own. This really does look like his handwriting, but I can't confirm whether someone forged it."

He knew how serious this was as well. If Niu Youdao truly could treat Tianyu Sect's defenses as though they did not exist, that would be no small matter. Peng Youzai swept his gaze over the others.

"What do all of you think?"

Someone said, "Sect Leader, surely you don't actually believe this? Why would Jinzhou possibly attack Nanzhou? Unless Myriad Caves Heavenly Mansion has suddenly gone mad and wants to fight us to the death!"

Another said, "Exactly. Now that we've taken Nanzhou, Jinzhou has gained a stronger ally. That benefits Myriad Caves Heavenly Mansion. I simply cannot imagine any reason they would damage their own interests and destroy such a favorable situation. It is completely impossible."

Everyone began speaking at once. All of them thought it impossible. Only Feng Entai remained silent at the side, occasionally glancing at the letter in his hand. He had worked alongside Niu Youdao in the State of Qi for a long time and had personally experienced the man's capabilities.

If this letter truly had come from Niu Youdao, then those words "completely impossible" did not leave him feeling entirely secure.

Peng Youzai caught his junior brother's reaction from the corner of his eye. That was precisely the hidden concern troubling him as well. Niu Youdao slipping away in advance was itself an ominous sign. Peng Youzai had always feared Niu Youdao would act, yet had no idea when he might strike. The key was that the fellow's ability could not be underestimated.

Years ago, Peng Youzai could never have imagined that a minor figure he could have crushed to death at any time would one day bring this much pressure upon him, the Sect Leader of Tianyu Sect.

Someone said, "Everyone should stop frightening yourselves. If Jinzhou were truly gathering three hundred thousand troops to attack, it couldn't possibly do so without creating movement. Have our eyes in Jinzhou pay closer attention and we'll know whether it's true or false. There's no need for all of us to sit here wasting time debating a letter with no beginning or end. Mm!"

Quite a few people nodded.

Peng Youzai said, "Good. We'll do that. Have our people in Jinzhou investigate immediately."

He lifted his chin toward one elder. The man cupped his hands in acknowledgment.

Then Peng Youzai added, "There's no hurry to continue the journey. We'll remain at this relay station for now until we've clarified the situation. Also, notify Feng Lingbo not to act rashly for the time being. Leave Meng Shanming alive."

Everyone fell silent. They understood what he meant. If Jinzhou truly had gone mad and intended to attack, then there would be no returning to Nanzhou's provincial capital. They would need to rush back to Feng Lingbo's side immediately and personally oversee resistance against Myriad Caves Heavenly Mansion. They could not possibly leave Feng Lingbo to hold the line alone. He could not hold it. As for leaving Meng Shanming alive for the moment, the reason was just as simple.

If Jinzhou truly attacked, Tianyu Sect would still need to rely on that old marshal's exceptional ability to defeat Jinzhou's offensive and preserve itself. Otherwise, if Tianyu Sect suffered defeat and lost Nanzhou, it would be strange if the three major sects did not destroy them. Taking another step back, if an external enemy truly appeared, then now was no time to start internal conflict. If several hundred thousand troops within Nanzhou were divided among themselves, what battle would there even be left to fight?

Since they had not yet touched Meng Shanming and had not yet torn away the pretense, stopping now was still easy enough. Once the situation was confirmed, if nothing was wrong, there would be plenty of time to act later. A delay this small made no difference...

"Your Highness, the Sect Leader has ordered that we suspend the journey for now and rest here at the relay station."

Bai Yao emerged from the relay-station hall and informed Shang Chaozong's group. As for why they were stopping, he did not explain. Shang Chaozong, Lan Ruoting, and Shang Shuqing exchanged glances. They understood. The letter was having an effect. Its contents were alarmist enough that Tianyu Sect could hardly avoid feeling some pressure. But the tension in the three of them did not ease. They all knew this was only temporary. None knew what state Meng Shanming was currently in. They worried about him, yet could not ask.

They had to keep it bottled inside. At this point, under Tianyu Sect's tight control, there was nothing else they could do... Inside an office at the yamen, Feng Lingbo sat holding a secret letter, his brows knitted and his face speechless.

He had only seen Peng Youzai and the others off that morning, and now, halfway through the afternoon, a letter had arrived telling him not to move against Meng Shanming for the time being. What exactly was this supposed to mean? The letter offered no explanation, leaving him thoroughly puzzled and somewhat uneasy. He raised his head and looked at Peng Yulan, who had brought the letter.

"Yulan, Father hasn't changed his mind and decided to support Shang Chaozong again, has he?"

"How could that be possible?" Peng Yulan said. "Shang Chaozong is wildly ambitious. Supporting him would only create trouble for Tianyu Sect. You understand the situation perfectly well."

Feng Lingbo flicked the letter in his hand.

"Then what does this sudden change of mind mean?"

Peng Yulan pondered as well. "How would I know?"

Feng Lingbo rose, took her hand, and squeezed it lightly.

"Yulan, contact Father privately and ask. If I don't understand what's happening, I won't feel at ease."

Peng Yulan nodded. Just then, an unusual commotion suddenly broke out outside. Peng Yulan abruptly turned her head toward the doorway. In a flash, she shot out of the room like a swallow and landed in the courtyard. Following the direction in which the Tianyu Sect disciples on guard were looking, she saw a large flying bird circling overhead. Feng Lingbo came outside after her and looked up as well... In the side courtyard, Luo An stopped pushing the wheelchair and raised his head.

Meng Shanming, seated in the chair, looked up as well. A flying mount circled overhead, and three figures could faintly be seen standing on its back. Looking around again, they saw Tianyu Sect disciples appearing atop the taller roofs, watching the sky warily. After circling for a while, the flying mount suddenly dove and disappeared toward some unknown part of the city.

[End of Chapter 425]