Chapter 852: Danger, Danger, Danger

"What did he say to Tong Mo?" Shang Jianxiong asked as he walked.

"He brought up Yan Baoru, the expert ranked second on the Golden Core Ranking, and said Prime Minister Tong ordered her to assassinate him inside the Secret Realm..."

Ga Miaoshui, who had followed him away, quickly recounted the exchange between Niu Youdao and Tong Mo.

The bastard had nerve.

He had actually dared come to the capital, and then dared come here and threaten people inside the imperial palace!

Shang Jianxiong's cheek twitched violently. Then he frowned.

He had no idea whether the claim that Yan Baoru had tried to assassinate Niu Youdao was true.

It seemed Tong Mo had been hiding certain things from him as well...

Tong Mo's thoughts churned a hundred times over, but nothing showed on his face. His stride remained steady as he walked alone at the front.

He understood perfectly what Niu Youdao's public threat to wipe out his entire household meant to the officials of his faction.

Their hearts would be unsettled.

Gao Jiancheng and Shang Yongzhong quickened their pace until they caught up with him. While watching Tong Mo's face, Shang Yongzhong spoke indignantly.

"Utterly lawless! He actually dared come into the palace and threaten a high minister of the court. Outrageous!"

Tong Mo answered calmly, "This is not a place where he gets to run wild. Let him jump around for a while. The three great sects will deal with him sooner or later."

Just then, a young eunuch came running over.

"Prime Minister Tong, His Majesty summons you."

Tong Mo left with the eunuch.

Shang Yongzhong and Gao Jiancheng watched him go for a moment, then exchanged glances.

Shang Yongzhong lowered his voice. "In the Grand Minister of the Masses' opinion, did Prime Minister Tong really order that Yan Baoru to assassinate Niu Youdao?"

"How could Niu Youdao's words be trusted?" Gao Jiancheng replied.

Seeing that Gao Jiancheng had left no opening at all, Shang Yongzhong cursed inwardly and asked again, "So Niu Youdao deliberately came to make trouble for Prime Minister Tong this time?"

Gao Jiancheng cupped his hands in return. "I would be pleased to hear Your Excellency's insight."

Shang Yongzhong rolled his eyes, tucked both hands into his sleeves, clasped them over his belly, and strolled away.

Looking left and right, he muttered, "The weather is quite pleasant today."

...

At lunchtime, Fan Zhuan, steward of the Gao residence, personally brought several dishes from home to Gao Jiancheng's office.

The other officials did not wish to disturb the Grand Minister of the Masses while he ate and gradually withdrew.

Once no outsiders remained, Fan Zhuan lowered his voice.

"I heard Niu Youdao came to the palace?"

Gao Jiancheng gave a quiet acknowledgement. "Why did you come yourself?"

As he laid out the food boxes, Fan Zhuan pulled a sheet of paper from a hidden compartment and handed it over.

"A message from Niu Youdao to the residence."

Surprised, Gao Jiancheng quickly unfolded the sheet and read it.

There was only one instruction.

Keep watch over the Tong household. Not a single member of the Tong family was to be allowed to escape!

After reading it, Gao Jiancheng opened a drawer, took out a fire striker, blew it alight, and burned the message to ash.

Fan Zhuan asked quietly, "He's going to make a move against Tong Mo?"

"We still don't know who is going to make a move against whom," Gao Jiancheng said.

"The people from the three great sects wanted to keep Niu Youdao inside the imperial palace, but His Majesty refused no matter what. They've found another place outside for him to stay now. The whole situation feels unusual."

"The waters of this capital run deep. Tong Mo has occupied the position of Prime Minister for many years. His roots are deep and his power is immense. All kinds of dragons and snakes gather under his command. Yan Baoru is unlikely to be the only one."

"Unless the three great sects use overwhelming force, even they may not be able to sound out the true depth of what he has beneath the surface."

"This is Tong Mo's territory. He is not someone anyone can simply overturn because they feel like it."

"And with the man inside the palace cooperating with him, Niu Youdao's sudden visit was somewhat rash. Things are not as simple as he imagines."

"I'm afraid Tong Mo will not let him survive the night."

Fan Zhuan asked, "Then what do we do?"

Gao Jiancheng turned his gaze toward the window and slowly said, "We have no choice."

"Do as he instructed. Place reliable men outside the Tong residence. Activate our eyes inside the household and have them watch closely."

"If anyone from the Tong family tries to leave, immediately send word to the people outside and have them followed."

"Remember: it must be handled cleanly. Do not let the fire burn back onto us."

"Understood." Fan Zhuan agreed.

He finished arranging the meal, quietly discussed a few more details, then left.

...

In a quiet part of the capital stood a residence temporarily arranged for Niu Youdao.

Niu Youdao had wanted to leave.

The people from the three great sects refused to allow it.

They had sent ten men to keep watch over him.

When he entered his room, Niu Youdao looked around.

The room had been cleaned meticulously.

Yet on the spotless table lay a conspicuous sheet of white paper.

He approached and noticed writing on the reverse side.

With a casual gesture, he drew the sheet up with spiritual power and flipped it in midair.

Three words were written across it.

Danger.

Danger.

Danger.

There was a small mark in the lower-left corner.

One glance told Niu Youdao it was a warning sent by Gao Jiancheng.

He could not help smiling.

The waters of this capital truly were far deeper than usual. These great ministers of the court were none of them simple men.

This residence had only just been selected as his temporary lodging.

Yet before he had even moved in, Gao Jiancheng had somehow arranged for the warning to appear inside his room without anyone noticing.

This was precisely why Niu Youdao had never dared come casually to the capital all these years.

He had never underestimated secular ministers who wielded real power.

Seeing how cautious he was, not even touching a sheet of paper directly, Guan Fangyi came over.

"What is it?"

Niu Youdao twisted his hand.

Spiritual power instantly reduced the paper to powder, preventing the contents of the warning from leaking out.

Guan Fangyi had not managed to read it.

She gave a cold snort, rolled her eyes, and said irritably, "I'm warning you now. I spent years in the Qi capital. Yanjing is probably much the same."

"Do not underestimate someone like Tong Mo. Men who hold both money and power in their hands are terrifying. There is no way Yan Baoru is the only expert under him."

She had never expected Niu Youdao to arrive in Yanjing and immediately provoke Tong Mo directly.

He had practically placed a blade against the man's neck.

Wu Zhaoxing said, "This is the heart of an entire state. Every kind of person and force gathers here. Dragons and fish mingle together. We truly need to be careful."

For even Wu Zhaoxing to say this made it obvious he too believed a man like Tong Mo was not easy to provoke, especially here in the capital.

Niu Youdao swept his sleeve through the drifting dust left from the paper.

"Messages traveling back and forth to the three great sects take time. Before their replies arrive, the people here will not act rashly against me."

"As long as the three great sects do not intervene with force, nothing here can go wrong."

As he spoke, he looked around the room again.

"Send the signal. Have Yun Ji come see me."

...

Beneath the eaves of the Song embassy, Qian Liansheng paced back and forth anxiously.

Given Song's present circumstances, being its envoy stationed in Yanjing was not an easy position.

Not easy at all.

When Song had been strong, he could swagger through Yan's court, looking down on everyone and flaunting the prestige of his state.

Now he spent his days begging one person after another for help.

Ever since that episode outside the Yan imperial palace when he had stripped naked and hurled abuse, Song's national fortunes seemed to have gone from bad to worse.

The worry had truly turned his hair white.

Both temples were already frosted with gray.

A subordinate hurried over.

Qian Liansheng immediately asked, "Well? Did you find Niu Youdao's whereabouts?"

Song was searching everywhere for Niu Youdao, hoping to persuade Yan to send troops.

They had been unable to find him.

Then suddenly came news that Niu Youdao had appeared in Yanjing.

At a time like this, how could Qian Liansheng let the opportunity to meet him slip away?

Whether Niu Youdao agreed or not, Qian Liansheng had to find a way to see him and argue Song's case.

That was a duty he could not shirk.

"We found him." The subordinate nodded repeatedly and offered a sealed letter with both hands. "Niu Youdao had someone deliver this. He asks to meet you!"

"Ah!" Qian Liansheng exclaimed.

Then wild joy spread across his face.

If he had gone begging at Niu Youdao's door, there was no telling what kind of reception he might receive.

But Niu Youdao taking the initiative to ask for a meeting was something else entirely.

If he had no intention of sending troops, why would he seek out Qian Liansheng first?

The thought filled him with enormous hope.

He immediately opened the letter and read.

The joy on his face gradually froze and gave way to suspicion.

The letter did indeed request a meeting, but demanded that it be held in absolute secrecy.

No one could be allowed to discover it.

Niu Youdao had specified the secret location and even limited the number of people Qian Liansheng could bring.

"What does he mean by this?" Qian Liansheng asked his men uncertainly.

One subordinate replied, "It makes sense. If he truly intends to send troops, he may once again need to bypass Yan's three great sects and the imperial court. In that case, he would have no choice but to act secretly."

Qian Liansheng nodded, finding the explanation persuasive.

Whatever doubts remained, he still had to attend.

Besides, there was no reason for Niu Youdao to harm a mere envoy like him.

Naturally, the necessary precautions still had to be taken.

Qian Liansheng immediately began making quiet preparations.

By dusk, he had changed his appearance and left the embassy with four guards through a secret tunnel prepared for covert use.

Embassies of every state inevitably conducted certain affairs that could never see daylight.

Preparing tunnels like these was perfectly normal.

Street lamps had begun to glow by the time their carriage rolled through the city.

Qian Liansheng swayed with its motion, occasionally lifting one corner of the window curtain to glance outside.

Worry remained between his brows.

They eventually reached the side entrance of a secluded residence.

One man jumped down from the carriage and knocked.

After he explained their purpose, the door opened and the carriage itself was allowed inside.

The person receiving them was Old Six Xu, who had changed his appearance.

Qian Liansheng climbed down and immediately asked, "Where is Master Dao?"

He did not call Niu Youdao by name.

Instead, he respectfully used the title "Master Dao," which he had heard was how the people of Maolu Villa addressed him.

There was no helping it.

When one needed something from another person, respect cost nothing.

"Please follow me."

Old Six Xu led them deep into the inner courtyard and into a room.

When he opened the door, a tunnel entrance was visible in the floor.

Standing beside it, Old Six Xu extended a hand in invitation.

"Everyone, simply keep walking straight. Someone will meet you at the other end. You will naturally see Master Dao then."

The affair was growing increasingly mysterious.

Qian Liansheng and his guards exchanged looks, then steeled themselves and descended into the tunnel.

It was pitch black below.

One of the men released a Moon Butterfly to provide light.

The passage was not wide, accommodating at most two people side by side.

Its walls, however, were remarkably smooth, almost as though they had formed naturally.

There were no forks in the tunnel, yet it seemed extraordinarily long.

The farther Qian Liansheng and the others walked, the more astonished they became.

The exit still had not appeared.

They had never imagined Niu Youdao could have excavated such a long tunnel inside Yanjing.

This was no small undertaking.

Only after walking nearly a full li did they finally reach the other end.

They climbed out into another room.

Old Second Wu was already waiting there.

He asked them to wait briefly.

Only after someone outside sent word confirming there were no suspicious eyes nearby did Old Second Wu lead them from the room.

The moment they emerged and saw the buildings around the residence, one of Qian Liansheng's men leaned close and whispered that this was indeed the lodging where their intelligence had placed Niu Youdao.

That eased Qian Liansheng's mind considerably.

He had assumed they would now meet Niu Youdao.

Instead, Old Second Wu led them into another room and warned them that the imperial court had eyes outside.

They were to hide quietly here and make no sound until Master Dao summoned them.

After Old Second Wu left, the group waited in silence.

They waited until darkness had fully fallen.

The room was black.

Still, no summons came.

After a long period of silence, the soft, clear notes of a qin suddenly drifted in from outside.

Everyone inside turned their heads and listened.

[End of Chapter 852]