Seeing the Emperor's surprise, Fang Jie didn't rush to explain. Instead, he turned to Su Buwei and said, "Please, Your Excellency, immediately send someone to contact Commander Luo and have him spread the word that Chen Xiaoru, Nie Xiaoju, and Yan Kuang were chosen by Commander Luo from the Imperial Guards to protect my safety. Of course, you could also say they are spies planted around me."
Su Buwei paused, then looked at the Emperor.
The Emperor nodded and said, "Go ahead and do it. Fang Jie must have his reasons for saying that."
Su Buwei responded, went out, and beckoned. A young eunuch quickly came over. Su Buwei whispered a few instructions in his ear, then returned to the East Warm Pavilion.
Fang Jie said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty has ordered me to get close to Prince Yi, but this is a difficult task. I'm short-handed, so Eunuch Su transferred three experts to me. However, it's inconvenient to keep their skills hidden. Besides, once they're by my side, someone will definitely investigate. Rather than hiding them, it's better to let them reveal their abilities… After this assassination attempt, if they're found to be from the Imperial Guard, it'll be easier to be believed."
The Emperor hummed in agreement and asked, "Is there any other reason?"
"Yes."
Fang Jie nodded: "Prince Yi sent a woman to…" "I was afraid Chen Xiaoru and the other two wouldn't be able to hide their cultivation levels, so I simply let them display them. Also… I made a special trip to the Sanjin Marquis's residence today…"
The Emperor's eyes narrowed slightly, and he looked at Fang Jie seriously, asking, "What did the Sanjin Marquis say to you?"
"He said nothing."
Fang Jie lowered his head and said, "But almost everyone in Chang'an knows that I have some dealings with the Sanjin Marquis in private. I happened to be assassinated shortly after leaving the Sanjin Marquis's residence, and some people started to panic. Only when things got chaotic… could I find an opportunity to discover something."
The Emperor gestured for him to continue.
Fang Jie explained, "No one knows who sent the assassin, so they'll suspect each other first. Prince Yi will also be suspicious, and then he'll send people to investigate. I know Prince Yi trusts a steward in his household named Qin Liuqi immensely. If nothing unexpected happens, this man should be running around Chang'an right now."
The Emperor raised an eyebrow slightly, turning to Su Buwei and saying, "Have someone keep an eye on this Qin Liuqi. Record where he's been and report back to me."
"Yes!"
Su Buwei went out again to give the order.
"Fang Jie..."
The Emperor looked at Fang Jie and asked, "You say the assassins were your doing. Do you have other accomplices? A while ago you sent your two attendants out of the city. Although I don't know what they did, it was precisely because you lacked help that you asked Su Buwei to send you people. Tell me, who was the one disguised as the assassin?"
Fang Jie lowered his head and said, "It's true that I sent Da Quan and Qilin out of Chang'an, but they didn't go far. They stayed outside the city for two days and then quietly returned. No one knows about this." "The truth is known only to me. Even the three men sent by Eunuch Su were not told, and they still don't know that the assassins were our own people. Today, one was Qilin, and the other was a helper I invited from the Martial Arts Academy, named Xie Fuyao."
The Emperor nodded: "Xie Fuyao of the Xie family of Jiangnan, I've heard of that name."
Fang Jie explained: "Your Majesty has entrusted me with many investigations, and it's extremely difficult for me to uncover the whole truth by investigating openly. Therefore, I must have my helpers hide and investigate secretly. This way, my opponents will lower their guard, thinking that keeping an eye on me is enough. Although I'm extremely careful in my approach, it's hard to guarantee that no one will suspect I'm working for Your Majesty… Therefore, I rely more on my secret helpers."
"Daquan is still hiding. I'm having him keep an eye on some people. Xie Fuyao doesn't know these things; he only agreed to help because of our good personal relationship."
The Emperor frowned slightly: "Since he's already in, Su Buwei… go and investigate this Xie Fuyao. If you trust him, have him secretly assist Fang Jie." "Understood."
Su Buwei nodded: "This servant obeys the decree."
Fang Jie continued: "I also intend to use the matter of my injury to wait for Prince Yi to come to me. Everyone is curious and wants to know what happened. I've only been to Prince Yi's residence once, and I haven't found out much, so it's always good to go in a few more times. And it's normal for someone who has been frightened and injured to have several helpers with him. Therefore, I plan to take the three helpers that Eunuch Su assigned to me with me, and Shen Qingshan will also go..."
"And then?"
The Emperor asked. "And then?"
Fang Jie smiled. "My target isn't actually Prince Yi's residence, but Zhuang Die, whom I left at home."
"Who is Zhuang Die?"
"She's Prince Yi's spy sent to my side… Everyone else at home is gone, leaving her alone. I don't believe she'll waste such a good opportunity. I've prepared some things she'll be interested in and hidden them away. Of course, she'll definitely find them after some effort. Where these things end up, and what they cause, is what I want to see. Of course, those things are all fakes made by me."
"Hmm."
The Emperor nodded and asked, "Fang Jie… do you have any ideas about Wu Yidao?"
Fang Jie lowered his head and said, "I dare not have any ideas." "Law."
"That's good. The matter you need to handle now is the one I entrusted to you. Don't worry about anything else. From what you said before, I know you know something about Wu Yidao. You're very clever to be able to arrange today's scene using Wu Yidao's affairs. But remember, you only need to touch upon Wu Yidao's affairs once, today."
"I understand."
Fang Jie bowed and said, "I have something else I must confess to Your Majesty."
"Speak."
"I secretly run a clothing workshop and have made some novel styles of clothing that I plan to have the Red Sleeves wear on February 12th. I know that doing such a thing on such a solemn day is improper. Please punish me, Your Majesty."
"Are you short of money?"
The Emperor asked, narrowing his eyes. Fang Jie nodded: "I'm short! Very short."
The Emperor hadn't expected Fang Jie's answer. After a slight pause, he smiled and said, "I already know about this. Even if you're short of money, I won't reward you. My silver is reserved for rewarding meritorious soldiers in the Northwest. So, if you plan to earn some money for your expenses, I naturally won't make things difficult… Send in a few sets after February 12th…"
"My clothes are very well-made, not cheap at all," Fang Jie said shamelessly.
The Emperor narrowed his eyes and said, "You mean you want me to pay? Fine, then I'll have Luo Weiran take men and raid your tailor shop right now. Have you forgotten the rule that merchants cannot hold office? Do you want money, or do you want your future?"
Fang Jie thought to himself, are all emperors this shameless?
"I'll have a few sets sent in shortly…"
…
…
Fang Jie told the Emperor many truths, but undoubtedly, there was much more he hadn't said. His plot to assassinate him couldn't be that simple. Only by telling the majority of the truth could he satisfy the emperor. Fang Jie never thought he could deceive this wise emperor, but he knew that telling most of the truth while keeping a small part hidden would definitely work.
His decision to have someone assassinate him was definitely related to Wu Yidao.
However, Fang Jie couldn't say that.
After leaving Taiji Palace, Fang Jie boarded a carriage and returned to his shop on East Twenty-Third Street. As soon as he got off, he saw two servants in blue robes and black boots waiting at the door.
"This servant greets Young Master Fang. Prince Yi invites you to his residence."
Fang Jie smiled and said, "Very well, thank you for announcing."
He first went back to the shop, instructing Zhuang Die to watch the house, and then left with the servants of Prince Yi's residence. Zhuang Die saw him off until his carriage disappeared from sight before returning. The young woman's face was somewhat unnatural after entering the house, and her chest heaved violently.
She stood there for a while, gritted her teeth, and rushed upstairs to Fang Jie and Chen Qingshan's room.
...
...
Half-Moon Mountain.
Mo Wanwu arranged the offerings he had brought, then took out a lot of paper money from his bundle and lit it with a tinderbox. He placed several cups on the ground and filled them with wine.
He squatted down and poured the wine into the soil, cup by cup.
The mountain forest was dense and the wind was light, but the paper money burned very brightly. He stared at the churning flames and murmured, "I'm sending some money to burn for you. You're all from wealthy families; you must be spending money lavishly down there. I'll come back every now and then to burn some more."
As soon as he finished speaking, a mountain gust of wind blew, and the flames leaped up, scattering the paper money all over the ground.
Mo Wanwu paused, then sighed, "I know you resent me, that I caused your deaths here for no reason. I was too arrogant, thinking everything was within my calculations. I was this conceited in my youth, and I still can't shake this flaw. If your resentment is too great, you can come to me in a dream to talk..."
"They're all dead, what else could they say? I, on the other hand, have something to say to you."
A voice suddenly came from behind Mo Wanwu, startling him.
He abruptly stood up and turned around, his right hand forming a fingerprint.
A young man in a scholar's robe appeared not far from Mo Wanwu, his hands behind his back, watching him with interest.
"I didn't expect the professor from the Martial Arts Academy to be such a sentimental person. This is quite different from when you coldly led them into the mountains. It's truly remarkable."
"Who are you?"
Mo Wanwu raised an eyebrow and asked. The young man chuckled, "It seems I was overthinking things. Who would remember the face of such a nobody as me? If I had known this would happen, why would I have gone to such lengths… I was going to ask if you remembered me, but now it seems there's no need to."
"But…"
The young man smiled slightly, "I still have to kill you."
"Fang Henshui!"
Mo Wanwu was startled, a surge of hatred flashing in his eyes.
"I didn't expect you hadn't run away yet."
Fang Henshui laughed loudly, "Why would I run away? Before the people the court sent to Jiangnan return, nobody in Chang'an will recognize me even if I walk the streets. What am I afraid of?"
"If that's the case, why did you kill so many people!"
"Because I wanted to kill."
Fang Henshui said calmly, "I'm eager to know just how strong I really am. Those people I killed before were too weak, utterly powerless. Actually, I really don't want to kill anymore, but if I don't kill, how can I improve my cultivation? Finding someone with considerable cultivation for a life-or-death duel is difficult in Chang'an… So after much thought, I came to find you. You're a professor at the Martial Arts Academy, so your cultivation must be very high."
"Only by constantly killing can I become stronger. And… don't you think killing is addictive? Every time I kill… I feel so happy."
Fang Henshui smiled slightly, "Aren't you curious why I suddenly became so strong? Come on, fight me. If you beat me, I'll tell you everything."