At this point, it seemed as though Zhuge Jingzhan had only one path left: to turn the tables.

Every sign so far indicated that this was a trap devised on the Tianming King Yang Xuanji’s orders and personally designed by Xun Youjiu.

And so Zhuge Jingzhan’s head ached, and so did his heart.

Xun Youjiu was his rival. To be outmaneuvered by a rival in this way was not truly cause for grief or rage — had he been in Xun Youjiu’s position, he might well have done the same.

What grieved and enraged him was Yang Xuanji’s attitude toward him. Yet he still harbored one or two shreds of expectation toward Yang Xuanji — which made his feelings all the more contradictory.

At first he had believed that burning the provisions he had so painstakingly gathered in the county town was already Xun Youjiu’s cruelest blow. Now he understood that the man had never intended merely to have him convicted of dereliction of duty — the charge being prepared for him was treason and collusion with the enemy.

He reasoned, therefore, that whichever direction he tried to flee, he would be intercepted. And by fleeing, he would only corroborate the accusation.

If that weren’t enough, Xun Youjiu would say: if you have nothing to hide, why run?

Zhuge Jingzhan trusted that a man as calculating as Xun Youjiu would certainly have anticipated that he would try to flee south to defect to Brother Tiger Li — and would have men stationed along that route waiting to intercept him. Once caught in the act, he would be dragged back and truly rendered speechless.

Gao Qingsheng said the man impersonating a Prince Ning soldier was still being held in Xinghua Tower in Lingshan County. To Zhuge Jingzhan, this was his only chance.

Seize that man. Expose Xun Youjiu’s scheme before everyone. Within the Tianming Army, Zhuge Jingzhan’s standing was respectable — in his current circumstances, of course no one would dare openly support him, but at the very least they would not actively back Xun Youjiu either.

When that moment came — with the tables turned on him — could the Tianming King Yang Xuanji still move against Zhuge Jingzhan without explanation? If he did, the generals and advisors at his side would likely all feel deeply unsettled.

The distance from here to Lingshan County was not great. Calculating the time, Xun Youjiu’s reinforcements should not have arrived yet.

Once they arrived, any hope of reversing the situation would be as distant as the clouds.

As for what came after…

Zhuge Jingzhan had lost seven or eight parts of his heart toward Yang Xuanji. For now, survive this one crisis. An opportunity to leave would come in time.

So Zhuge Jingzhan dared not waste a breath, and made for Xinghua Tower in Lingshan County at maximum speed.

He burst to the entrance of the tower and was immediately stopped by Sun Chong’s men.

“Insolence!”

Zhuge Jingzhan roared. “Given your rank, you dare bar my path?”

Sun Chong said coldly, “Master Zhuge would do well not to push too far. You ought to go before the Great King right now and explain how this business of Prince Ning’s spy being in contact with you came to pass.”

“Take him down!”

Zhuge Jingzhan ordered without hesitation.

His men immediately charged forward.

Sun Chong had few men — only a few dozen — while Zhuge Jingzhan had brought several hundred. When fighting broke out, Sun Chong’s side quickly began to crumble.

Zhuge Jingzhan strode into Xinghua Tower, walking and asking Gao Qingsheng at the same time, “Where is that fake Prince Ning spy you mentioned?”

Gao Qingsheng pointed upstairs. “On the upper floor, bound in one of the rooms.”

Zhuge Jingzhan quickened his pace up the stairs, Gao Qingsheng following close behind. As they went, Gao Qingsheng kept talking. “That man works for Xun Youjiu — he impersonated a Prince Ning soldier and deliberately framed you, sir… When I escaped, that man was still bound in the room.”

Zhuge Jingzhan threw open the door — and at the same moment turned to ask Gao Qingsheng one more question: “Besides him, who else is in the room?”

Gao Qingsheng answered, “Me.”

Zhuge Jingzhan froze.

Then he looked at the figure lying on the floor below him… who was also Gao Qingsheng.

He spun around to look at the Gao Qingsheng who had been following behind him — eyes already going wide. In that single instant of turning, his pupils contracted sharply.

—

Half an hour later.

The Tianming King Yang Xuanji arrived at the gates of Lingshan County with his contingent, only to find two groups locked in fierce combat — on one side the force under Zhuge Jingzhan’s aide Yin Yong, and on the other, Xun Youjiu’s man Bai Hua.

The moment they caught sight of Yang Xuanji, both men stopped fighting.

“Seize them all.”

Yang Xuanji said in a cold, flat tone.

His Azure Cord Guards stepped forward. “On your knees!”

Yin Yong and Bai Hua exchanged a glance, then threw down their weapons simultaneously. Their men knelt.

“What exactly happened here?”

Yang Xuanji looked at Xun Youjiu beside him.

Xun Youjiu’s heart was equally gripped by panic. This whole affair had nothing to do with him — he had arranged none of it.

When the report suddenly arrived saying Zhuge Jingzhan had been in contact with a Prince Ning soldier, he knew immediately that things had gone very wrong.

He could have devised ten thousand methods of eliminating Zhuge Jingzhan, and would have stopped at nothing — but framing him for colluding with Prince Ning’s forces was not one of them.

Because it was impossible. No matter how convincingly you staged it, Yang Xuanji would never believe it. Even he himself wouldn’t believe it.

“This subordinate truly does not know how this came about. This subordinate also did not send anyone to take over Master Zhuge’s force, nor dispatched anyone out of the main camp, so the matter of the arson has absolutely nothing to do with this subordinate.”

Xun Youjiu explained, “Perhaps… it truly was people sent by Prince Ning Li Chi.”

Yang Xuanji’s expression flickered, and in a flash of realization: “Li Chi wanted Zhuge Jingzhan dead?!”

Xun Youjiu gave a quiet affirmation. “Seven or eight chances in ten it was Prince Ning Li Chi’s people. The lord commander entrusted certain matters to this subordinate, and this subordinate has not dared deviate from those instructions in the slightest — these people were truly not sent by this subordinate.”

Yang Xuanji spurred his horse and rode toward Xinghua Tower.

The column halted at Xinghua Tower’s entrance. Before the door lay a number of corpses — including that of Lingshan County’s garrison commander, Sun Chong. Sun Chong had been cut half through the neck; blood pooled all around him, and he had long since stopped breathing.

Yang Xuanji strode quickly through the main entrance of Xinghua Tower. The great hall inside also held numerous corpses — it was evident that the fighting between Zhuge Jingzhan’s men and Sun Chong’s men had been exceptionally brutal.

Moving further inside, he found a cluster of men standing around something, their backs to him. Hearing Yang Xuanji arrive, they all turned and knelt in greeting.

As they knelt, Yang Xuanji finally saw what they had been gathered around: a large ceramic vat.

“Where is Zhuge Jingzhan?!”

Yang Xuanji demanded loudly.

Hands trembling, someone pointed at the large vat. Yang Xuanji’s expression changed — he quickened his pace to the vat’s side and looked in. In an instant, his face went white.

Zhuge Jingzhan was indeed inside the vat.

But Zhuge Jingzhan had not drowned — because there was no head on this body, and a man cannot drown without a head.

The water inside the vat had been stained a deep red. The cut at the neck was clean and even — clearly a single blade stroke had severed it. The head was not here, not anywhere in Xinghua Tower. It could only have been taken by whoever Prince Ning had sent, as proof of the kill when reporting back.

In the moment Yang Xuanji bent over to look into the vat, the sight of that headless body gave him such a shock that he stumbled backward two full steps.

“What happened here?!”

Yang Xuanji bellowed as he retreated.

—

At the same moment, seventeen or eighteen li outside the city, Yu Jiuling galloped along, glancing back over his shoulder. The outline of Lingshan County was growing smaller and smaller in the distance. He let out a satisfied laugh.

This whole thing — it all came down to me.

So Yu Jiuling was entitled to feel proud. Extravagantly, shamelessly proud. He looked ahead and thought: I really am something. And I could be even more something.

—

Two hours later.

Yang Xuanji dragged his exhausted body back to the main camp. At the entrance to the central command tent, every guard on duty bowed as he passed.

Yang Xuanji let out a slow breath, stepped inside the tent, and looked up to find a wooden box sitting on the table. He paused, then turned back to ask the guard at the entrance, “What is that wooden box? Who brought it?”

The guard bowed low and answered, “General Gao Qingsheng of the supply battalion came by, sir. He brought this box, saying you had ordered him to rush it back from Lingshan County.”

“Where is he now?!”

Yang Xuanji erupted with a sudden roar.

The shout was so fierce it sent every guard to their knees. One of them answered, “My lord, General Gao did not enter the tent — he handed the box to this subordinate and said you had instructed him to bring it, to be placed on your desk for you to see upon your return. After this subordinate took the box and set it there, the general said he needed to return to Lingshan County and left.”

“Useless fools, all of you!”

Another roar from Yang Xuanji. His face was contorted with fury.

He turned back to look at the wooden box on the table. Without opening it, he already knew what was inside.

But he still gave the order: “Open it.”

A guard hurried over and lifted the lid — then let out a startled cry and nearly fell over backward.

Inside the box, as expected, was Zhuge Jingzhan’s head. It had been treated with lime to suppress the smell of blood, but the features were still recognizable.

Zhuge Jingzhan’s mouth held a letter. Yang Xuanji ordered someone to retrieve it; he couldn’t bring himself to look directly, so he had a subordinate read it.

The subordinate tore open the envelope. The letter inside was brief — only a few sentences.

*All retribution in this world should come from one’s enemies. Zhuge Jingzhan is hereby executed in accordance with Prince Ning’s military law. As for you — the day will come when you drown. Additionally, you may ask Xun Youjiu whose man he truly is, and whether he still remembers his old master.*

“Ah—!”

Yang Xuanji let out a shriek of fury. He snatched the letter himself and tore it to shreds.

Even a man of his usual composure and bearing had been driven to this state — his face twisted beyond recognition.

“My lord…”

Xun Youjiu knelt, pressing his forehead to the floor. “My lord, please calm yourself. My lord, this subordinate has never concealed anything from you — this subordinate said before, when in Yuzhou Province, I served the Cao household…”

Yang Xuanji whipped his head toward Xun Youjiu. “Get out of my sight!”

Xun Youjiu’s shoulders gave a visible shudder of fright.

Yang Xuanji turned to face his assembled generals. “Every one of you — take your men and search. Bring those people back to me. All of them.”

“Yes, my lord!”

The generals responded in unison and turned, thundering out of the tent.

Moments later, the Tianming Army’s main camp surged into motion. Countless riders poured out from the camp and scattered in every direction.

—

At the river’s edge.

Dong Dongdong and Qi Qiangqi, who had stayed at the rendezvous point, saw Cao Lie and the others coming back and immediately emerged from the reed marshes to meet them.

“Quickly, quickly!”

Yu Jiuling leapt off his horse and broke into a run. “Walk any slower and we’re dead — there’s a whole pack of wretches chasing these grandfathers hard.”

Behind them, the rumble of heavy hooves was already faintly audible — a large cavalry contingent in pursuit.

No one dared linger. They reached the bank, threw off what they were carrying, and plunged one by one into the great river.

All of them were strong swimmers. They had come the same way, each biting down on a length of bamboo tube, keeping their heads submerged.

Moments later, Yang Xuanji’s pursuers arrived at the bank. They loosed arrows into the water in a relentless storm — shaft after shaft falling dense as a swarm of locusts.

Fortunately, water slows arrows, and they were not skewered into pincushions.

But contrary to expectation, those pursuers did not give up there. They plunged into the river themselves, knives clenched in their teeth, and swam forward.

Cao Lie and his group swam frantically to the north bank — a river this wide, with currents this fierce, left a man barely able to move by the time he climbed out on the other side.

The pursuing soldiers behind them were still under a death order: capture these people at any cost. They were still pressing forward, already close to the north bank.

“Young Lord, all of you go first.”

Dong Dongdong reached out to help Cao Lie up. “Old Qi and I will hold them for a while.”

Cao Lie shook his head. “We go together.”

At that moment, something cold and hard came to rest on Cao Lie’s shoulder. Whatever it was, its edge was close enough to his throat that he could already feel the breath of the underworld.

A voice spoke from behind him.

“What audacity you have.”

—