Chapter 269: The Wound

A light rain fell over Litian City.

For the past few days, even the hawkers and porters on the streets had stopped shouting their wares at the top of their lungs. In the teahouses, storytellers no longer dangled their usual “Come back next time to hear what happens next.”

Even the brothels, normally packed with customers, had gone quiet. The madams who usually strutted around cursing anyone who crossed them no longer dared step outside to stir up trouble.

The city was still the same city, and its people were still the same people.

Yet both had become cautious to the point of unease.

Squads of armored soldiers, far more numerous than usual, patrolled the streets with white mourning cloth tied around their left arms. Many had bloodshot eyes. Whenever they stared at the occasional passerby, it felt as though they were searching for an excuse to draw steel and kill someone.

These were elites who had survived great battles, men who had rolled through mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Once anger truly rose in them, the killing aura they carried was so dense that ordinary people scarcely dared meet their eyes.

Litian City had once been the Wenren Clan’s stronghold. In a sense, it had effectively served as the capital of a small state. Its citizens were no ignorant country bumpkins. They had seen the wider world.

And precisely because they had seen enough to understand what was happening, the chill in their hearts was even stronger.

It was already midsummer, yet the backs of their necks still felt cold.

...

Inside an inn, a waiter had just carried a tray of wine and dishes upstairs.

At the door stood a burly man wearing only a black vest over his upper body. He reached out, accepted the food, and tossed the waiter a piece of broken silver.

Normally, the waiter should have shouted, “Thank you for the reward, honored sir!”

He would then loudly announce the amount, and the shopkeeper and other servants downstairs would echo him with a chorus of thanks, giving proper face to the guest who had been generous enough to tip them.

This time, however, the waiter merely cupped his hands and thanked the man with an ingratiating smile.

He did not dare shout.

At a time like this, any sound of celebration or rowdiness felt deeply inappropriate.

The man paid it no mind. Carrying the tray, he pushed open the door.

Two men sat at the small table inside.

One wore a long azure robe. He looked to be in his early thirties, with an unusually delicate face and a high, thin voice.

The other wore a scholar’s robe. He was past fifty, with a goatee, an aged face, and remarkably clear eyes.

The burly man set the dishes on the table, saluted, then quietly withdrew. After closing the door, he resumed his post in the corridor outside.

Inside the room, Li Yinglian picked up the wine flask and poured a cup for the old man opposite him before filling his own.

He set the flask down and sighed.

“Our luck truly is rotten. After all these years, this is the first time We have been given an assignment outside the capital, and of all things, We had to run into something like this. Ai-yoh-yoh... How are We supposed to explain ourselves to His Highness the Crown Prince when we return?”

The old man smiled faintly.

He did not drink.

Instead, he grabbed a handful of fried peanuts, tossed several into his mouth, and said while chewing, “Why trouble yourself so much, Eunuch Li? Something this serious happened. What could any of it possibly have to do with you?”

Li Yinglian pointed at him.

“You, you... You simply don’t understand how masters think. Servants like Us may look impressive outside the palace, basking in our master’s prestige, but at the end of the day, everything depends on whether the master still values you and is willing to use you.

“The day your master decides he has no use for you anymore, even some newly castrated brat or little palace maid will stop looking at you properly!”

“Hmm?”

The old man clearly had not understood.

“Bad luck. That is what We mean.

“Think about it. His Highness sent Us out on an errand this time, and We immediately ran into a disaster like this. Next time, even if only for the sake of good fortune, he probably won’t dare use Us again.

“Ai-yoh...”

Li Yinglian continued lamenting his miserable fate.

“Heh.”

The old man finally understood.

All he could do was sigh inwardly at how difficult palace life must be.

Eunuchs were truly born actors.

Then the old man said, “Eunuch Li, that may be one way to look at it, but how do you know whether His Highness the Crown Prince will consider this matter a tragedy—or something fortunate?

“And if you do not know that, how can you know whether he will see you as unlucky in the future... or as auspicious?”

Li Yinglian had just lifted his wine cup.

His wrist trembled.

Wine spilled over the rim.

He immediately glared at the old man and snapped, “Impudent!”

The old man merely chuckled again and continued eating peanuts as though nothing had happened.

“You old bastard. Do you even know where we are?

“Do you know the Marquis of Jingnan returned to the city last night?

“The streets outside are full of Jingnan Army soldiers. Every last one of them has blood-red eyes. They look terrifying!”

The old man remained calm.

“We are all dogs beneath the same master’s feet. Why is it so difficult for family to close the door and speak a few words honestly among ourselves?

“Or is it that now you, Li Yinglian, have followed our master into the Eastern Palace and your status has risen to the point where you’re already comparing yourself to the future Wei Zhonghe?

“Have you suddenly become too precious to acknowledge this old brother who once licked the same dog bowl beside you?”

“Old Wen, you’ve spent too long wandering the jianghu. You’ve grown used to being undisciplined. We won’t hold it against you.”

“You think I wouldn’t rather live peacefully?

“You think I wouldn’t rather buy a small courtyard in Yanjing, hire two or three serving girls, and spend my old age comfortably?

“But can I?

“If I, Wen Yin, dared tell our master that I’m old and no longer want to work, do you believe that by the very next day these few catties of flesh would be floating in some filthy drainage ditch outside Yanjing?”

Li Yinglian lowered his eyelids.

“Fine. Say whatever you want.

“We rarely get the chance to leave the palace anyway. We would actually like to hear your opinion.

“When We return, at least We’ll have something useful to discuss with His Highness the Crown Prince.”

“That’s more like it.

“You, of all people, should stop acting so timid. Back when you killed your godfather to climb into his position, Li Yinglian, you weren’t nearly this fainthearted.”

“You’re straying from the subject.”

“I’m not.

“Let’s begin with this assignment of yours.

“What is the relationship between our master and the Marquis of Jingnan?”

“Uncle and nephew.”

“Exactly.

“That is how outsiders see it.

“They all say the Marquis of Jingnan is the great pillar standing behind His Highness the Crown Prince, and that so long as the Marquis remains, our master’s position as Crown Prince will remain secure.

“But outsiders cannot see through things clearly.

“You and I, however—do we really not understand?

“Between the Marquis of Jingnan and our master, is there even the slightest true affection between uncle and nephew?

“No.

“With a man like the Marquis of Jingnan, one might even ask whether there is any affection left in him at all.”

Li Yinglian remained silent.

“On the night the Tian Clan was exterminated, Her Majesty the Empress had returned home to visit her family.

“The Marquis of Jingnan dared exterminate his entire clan right in front of his own sister.

“After Her Majesty returned to the palace, she fell ill and has never truly recovered. There are even rumors that she lost her mind.

“Whatever else one may say about our master, there is one thing both of us acknowledge:

“He is filial.

“The bond between His Highness and Her Majesty the Empress is genuine.

“So after something like that happened, leaving aside the Marquis’s usefulness to our master’s future accession, do you truly think there is any familial affection left between His Highness and this uncle of his?

“Heh.

“Take another step back.

“Old Master Tian was our master’s own maternal grandfather.

“A man like the Marquis of Jingnan, who could slaughter even his own father and mother without mercy... only His Majesty today dares make use of such a man.

“In the future, once our master ascends the throne...

“Heh.”

Li Yinglian slowly closed his eyes.

“All right. We know you’ve spent years outside the palace, where rules are looser.

“Those words are unpleasant to hear.

“Fine.

“Let us not speak of that.

“Let us speak instead about the Marquis of Jingnan’s wife.

“You’ve been in Litian City for some time now.

“Have you ever seen her?”

Li Yinglian opened his eyes and shook his head.

“Madam resides deep inside the Marquis’s residence. Security is extremely tight.

“And before the Marquis left on campaign, he gave orders that the residence was to receive no visitors until his return.

“Forget that We came here on His Highness the Crown Prince’s orders.

“Even if Wei Zhonghe himself arrived carrying an imperial decree, do you believe he would be able to enter that residence?”

“I do.

“I do.

“The Marquis of Jingnan truly does have the standing to refuse anyone’s face.”

“That is why, ever since We arrived, We have been staying at the relay station outside the city.

“We never saw the Marquis’s wife.

“Originally, We intended to wait until she gave birth, then deliver His Highness’s gift list on his behalf, obtain a receipt, and return to the capital.

“That would have been enough to complete the assignment.

“After all, no one knew how long the Marquis would remain on campaign.

“We could hardly wait around forever.

“Who could have imagined something like this would happen?”

“Do you know where it happened?”

“On the mountain road at Tianhu Mountain.

“The people of Litian City are all talking about it.

“They say the disturbance that day was enormous.”

“One should never place too much faith in street gossip.

“The common people of Litian City are all saying that the Marquis of Jingnan had committed too much slaughter, so karmic retribution descended upon his wife and child.

“They say that while awaiting childbirth, his wife had a nightmare and became frightened.

“She went to a Daoist temple on Tianhu Mountain to pray for the Marquis’s safety.

“Who could have imagined that on the way back, the Daoist Patriarch would send down heavenly thunder and strike her dead?

“And in the end, everyone adds the same little moral:

“Good is rewarded with good, evil with evil.”

Li Yinglian smiled.

“That is also the version We managed to uncover.”

“You believe it?”

“Of course not.

“That old gentleman in the palace once told us that he cultivated for an entire lifetime and never even heard Heaven fart once.

“So all that nonsense about good and evil inevitably receiving their reward, or Heaven having eyes—it is all ghost talk used to fool people.”

Wen Yin leaned back in his chair.

“You...

“You really have spent too long inside the palace.

“Your head has started working strangely.”

“What is wrong with what We said?”

“Of course heavenly thunder descending from the sky is completely absurd.

“The problem is that you actually wasted time thinking about whether that part was true.”

“Then what should We be thinking about?”

“Think about who the Marquis of Jingnan’s wife is—apart from being the Marquis’s woman.”

Li Yinglian’s expression abruptly froze.

Wen Yin slowly tossed another peanut into his mouth.

“These years, I have helped His Highness gather jianghu men in places that cannot see the light of day, to handle matters that likewise cannot see the light of day.

“Because of that, I’ve crossed paths with people from the Secret Intelligence Department more than once.

“Perhaps because they knew we served His Highness, and because we never crossed the line too badly, they generally turned a blind eye to us.

“But let me speak plainly.

“People love saying the State of Qian’s Silver-Armored Guard can penetrate anywhere.

“Yet Great Yan’s Secret Intelligence Department is no ordinary institution either.

“Take the Marquis’s wife.

“If she were not pregnant, then when the Marquis marched onto the snowfields this time, she would almost certainly have accompanied him.

“A woman like that—you think she would lose her composure because her husband was campaigning far from home?

“You think one nightmare would frighten her witless?

“And then she would foolishly run to Tianhu Mountain to burn incense and pray at a Daoist temple?

“Does she not know how many enemies the Marquis has outside?

“Forget everything else.

“Just here in the Three Jin lands alone, there are more people who want the Marquis of Jingnan dead than anyone could count.”

Li Yinglian listened while sipping his wine in small mouthfuls.

“The heart of the matter is this:

“Why did the Marquis’s wife leave the heavily guarded residence in the first place?

“Why did she go to Tianhu Mountain?”

Li Yinglian smacked his lips.

Almost instinctively, he asked, “Why?”

Wen Yin’s next sentence made the wine cup fall from Li Yinglian’s hand.

It smashed to pieces against the floor.

Outside, the burly guard heard the sound and immediately threw open the door and rushed inside.

“Get out!

“Get out!”

Li Yinglian pointed sharply toward the door, his high voice cutting through the room.

The burly man froze for a moment, saluted, then withdrew and shut the door once more.

Li Yinglian pressed his left hand against his chest.

He was no longer sitting in his chair.

He was crouching on the floor.

He raised his head and stared at the old man.

Then, in a low, hoarse voice, he demanded, “How dare you...

“How dare you even say such a thing?”

Wen Yin remained perfectly composed, still eating his peanuts.

And the question he had just asked continued ringing in Li Yinglian’s ears, every word stabbing like a needle into his eardrums:

“Eunuch Li.

“His Highness the Crown Prince sent you here to congratulate the Marquis of Jingnan on the birth of his child.

“So tell me—did His Majesty also send someone?”

[End of Chapter 269]