Prince Gong had been in a good mood originally. Although Suzhou had been occupied by Cui Shaoting, and Yecha’s blocked rendezvous with Han Zhengqing had worried him for a while, the message Han Zhengqing sent back via courier quickly made him happy again.
Han Zhengqing had one good quality—he always kept his word. Since he dared to say he didn’t take Cui Shaoting seriously, he must have a way to deal with Cui Shaoting. Therefore, Prince Gong relaxed and took a bath, and even had the leisure to pick up his brush and write a sincere reply to Han Zhengqing. He wanted to write Han Zhengqing a letter asking him to find a way to help get his sons back.
He only had these two sons—he couldn’t lose either one. Otherwise, even if he truly gained control of the realm in the future, there would be no one to inherit it. Thinking about this, his mood soured again after finishing the letter. He sat dazedly in his chair for a long while and sighed. His stomach, which had been somewhat hungry, suddenly felt full, and he had no desire to eat anything at all.
This was ultimately a hidden danger… When he’d left his sons in the capital, he had been certain that Empress Dowager Lu and Emperor Jianzhang, no matter how angry they got, wouldn’t harm his sons. After all, his sons were also their grandsons. Especially Empress Dowager Lu—she had always doted on the children. Back when he was still in his fief, Empress Dowager Lu never forgot to bestow gifts on the children throughout the four seasons and on their birthdays. After returning to the capital, it was even more so. Even when they had their falling out, she never thought of harming his children.
But now it was different. He had used Xie Siyi to try to kill Empress Dowager Lu—to kill his own mother. He didn’t dare be certain that Empress Dowager Lu and Emperor Jianzhang wouldn’t kill his sons in a fit of rage to take revenge on him.
Thinking about this matter, he felt restless. He stared at the letter in a daze for a long time before personally sealing it with wax, having someone send it out, and only then sitting down to hear Wu Feng talk about Chief Clerk Ling’s matter.
When he heard Wu Feng say that Chief Clerk Ling was stubborn and nothing had been extracted from him, his eyebrows moved strangely. A flash of doubt flickered in his eyes before quickly disappearing. After a moment, he calmly asked: “He was stubborn?”
Prince Gong didn’t know whether Chief Clerk Ling’s bones were hard or not, but he was well aware of Wu Feng’s capabilities. If Wu Feng wanted to, even if a cow refused to drink water, he could forcibly push the cow’s head down.
Wu Feng didn’t detect Prince Gong’s unease. He frowned and looked at Prince Gong: “Your Highness, Chief Clerk Ling has followed you for so many years, always loyal and devoted. He even lost an arm for you… This matter…”
Before he could finish speaking, there was a loud bang from outside. Prince Gong jumped in fright and leaped straight up from his chair. Just as he steadied himself, he saw Han Yang burst in like a gust of wind, having kicked the door open. The moment his feet touched the ground and he glanced around the room, he lunged at Wu Feng and grabbed his throat.
He was stunned by this sudden scene, unable to react for a long while. He stood there dumbfounded, watching Han Yang grip Wu Feng’s throat while cursing up a storm.
Wu Feng was highly skilled in martial arts—even seven or eight ordinary men were no match for him. Although Han Yang’s attack came urgently and caught him off guard, he still reacted in an instant. With a twist of his body, Han Yang grasped at empty air. Wu Feng then grabbed Han Yang’s hand and twisted it to the side—there came a crisp crack, the sound of a bone dislocating.
Han Yang let out a howl of pain from Wu Feng’s twist, but his other hand refused to give up and still tried to dislocate Wu Feng’s arm, only to have Wu Feng reverse grip him and pin both hands behind his back.
Prince Gong stared in shock. It wasn’t until he heard Han Yang’s scream that he snapped out of it and reprimanded them with a frown.
Wu Feng kicked Han Yang from behind, easily sending him flying into the door with a dull thud. Han Yang couldn’t get up for a long time.
Han Yang lifted his eyes and looked at Prince Gong in confusion, scanned the room in a circle, and burst into aggrieved wails.
“This son of a bitch…” Han Yang cried with snot and tears streaming down his face. Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, he used his intact right hand to clutch his apparently dislocated left hand, crying out his grievances to Prince Gong: “Your Highness! You told me to interrogate Chief Clerk Ling’s case! Before I could even interrogate him, he went and killed the man!”
He looked at Wu Feng, his face full of righteous indignation: “He did it on purpose! He just can’t stand seeing me do well! Before, it was also him—he insisted on searching my quarters and turned my household upside down! He just finds me displeasing to the eye!”
As he spoke, he simply sat down on the ground and refused to get up, looking at Prince Gong with grievance written all over his face: “Your Highness, if you’re going to indulge him like this, I can’t do this job! I’m going back to find my father…” He looked at his dislocated arm that he couldn’t lift and cried even louder: “Your Highness, he just can’t stand that my father treats me well! I’ll go back and tell my father… Can’t I just quit?!”
Prince Gong glanced at Wu Feng. There was an indescribable, unclear complexity in his eyes.
Han Yang was a simple-minded fool who could only think as far as rivalry and jealousy. But one thing he said struck a chord in Prince Gong’s heart. Wu Feng—did he really particularly hate seeing him get along well with Han Zhengqing?
Why was that?
His mind was in chaos, but he instinctively scolded Han Yang: “What nonsense are you talking?! Who doesn’t value you? Who doesn’t want what’s best for you?” He paused, glanced at Wu Feng again, and said vaguely: “This was an accident. Forget it, forget it…” He thought about how Han Zhengqing’s letter had said to use Han Yang freely, and assumed on his own that Han Zhengqing was entrusting him to train his son well. He narrowed his eyes and said: “You don’t need to worry about this matter anymore. The person is already dead anyway—there’s no use in you being anxious. Forget it. You go—go to Weihai Guard and take charge of matters there… Whatever men you need, select them yourself.”
At this moment, he absolutely could not afford to offend Han Zhengqing. Han Zhengqing was currently holding his lifeline.
Han Yang still looked aggrieved. He looked at Prince Gong, muttered a few sentences, and reluctantly grunted his assent. He glared viciously at Wu Feng again and gave a cold laugh: “Don’t think I’m afraid of you! I’m giving the prince face here.” Then he turned back to look at Prince Gong: “He always ruins my affairs. This time with taking control of White Stork’s subordinates, Your Highness, I don’t want him interfering!”
Wu Feng opened his mouth as if he had something to say, but Prince Gong had already agreed. He raised his hand to stop Wu Feng and said to him: “What Han Yang says is true too. You two don’t get along—if you start quarreling, whose orders will the men below follow? Weihai Guard is already a thorn in our side and difficult to manage. If your men aren’t united in spirit, when will the troubles end? Besides, isn’t Guangning Guard currently also a complete mess?” He paused, then continued: “You and Wu Baihu should go together and sort out Guangning Guard’s affairs first.”
Wu Baihu was Wu Qianli’s son. Prince Gong felt that with this man accompanying Wu Feng, he could be somewhat more at ease.