Hoofbeats drummed urgently like pelting rain as Han Qian and Li Zhigao, surrounded by over a hundred mounted riders, concealed their heads and faces with black hoods, waiting for those ahead to present their credentials to the duty officer for verification.
Night had already fallen, and the duty officer scrutinized those requesting entry into the city with increasing strictness at this hour.
Han Qian and Li Zhigao sat silently amidst the surrounding crowd, waiting as the duty officer raised a windproof lantern high, shining it toward their faces—Han Qian still hoped to enter the city quietly. It would be best if the matter could be resolved within Jinxing Ward. Once Du Chongtao and Xu Zhaoling were alarmed, he couldn’t be certain what complications might arise.
Li Chong held his reins, exhausted from being jostled within the crowd. What troubled him even more was that he had no idea what was actually happening. He could only stare blankly at the dark, looming west gate tower of Xiangzhou.
Han Qian had suddenly appeared at Jingzikou yesterday at noon to meet with his elder brother Li Zhigao. After an hour of secret discussion, Li Zhigao had assembled his loyal guards, saying that Jin Rui, the supervisor of the Dengxiang Office under the Ministry of Personnel, might be plotting something detrimental to His Highness, and that the Guard Battalion might have been infiltrated by the Ministry of Personnel. He told Li Chong to leave the three hundred plus Guard Battalion cavalry at Jingzikou and accompany them alone in an urgent return to Xiangzhou.
However, exactly how Jin Rui intended to harm His Highness, and what intelligence the Left Bureau had uncovered, Han Qian wouldn’t say. Elder brother Li Zhigao only said that everything would become clear once they reached Xiangzhou, though it might also turn out to be a false alarm.
Li Chong grumbled inwardly—what kind of explanation was this?
Yet Han Qian and Li Zhigao, through a combination of deception and coaxing, had brought Li Chong back to Xiangzhou as well. Their main concern was that leaving Li Chong at Jingzikou might allow Chai Jian and Zhang Ping to see the possibility of Li Chong replacing Li Zhigao, which could complicate the situation.
Xi Ren was somewhat petite in stature, but her so-called petiteness was only relative to the tall, imposing figures of Han Qian and Li Zhigao. When she disguised herself as a man, wearing leather armor and a sword at her waist, even though she had used skin-changing paste to make her fair complexion appear sallow and sickly, she still appeared remarkably handsome.
She secretly watched Li Chong, guarding against the possibility that he might guess Han Qian and Li Zhigao’s scheme and act unexpectedly.
However, during the two days and one night journey from Jingzikou, though Li Chong remained bewildered, he clearly hadn’t guessed Han Qian and Li Zhigao’s intention in suddenly returning to Xiangzhou, even though their actions were so abnormal.
Indeed, if she hadn’t witnessed it with her own eyes and heard it with her own ears, Xi Ren would never have imagined that Han Qian would choose this moment to instigate Li Zhigao into staging a “military remonstrance.” She couldn’t fathom what made Han Qian confident he could persuade Li Zhigao, and she was even more surprised that Li Zhigao had actually been persuaded.
She had been by Han Qian’s side for three or four months now. Based on her observations of him, she had been more inclined to believe that Han Qian would most likely wait and watch as the situation deteriorated until just before it became completely uncontrollable, then decisively withdraw and flee to Xuzhou, rather than take such a risk to meet with Li Zhigao.
Had she misjudged this man? Perhaps his heart wasn’t as cold and ruthless as she’d thought, and he was willing to take some risks for others after all?
Han Qian glanced back at Xi Ren behind him, seeming to guess what she was thinking, and a slight smile curved at the corner of his mouth.
If the course of history remained unchanged, after Emperor Tianyou’s death, the Third Prince would soon be poisoned to death. Chai Jian, Li Chong, and even the Marquis of Xinchang, Li Pu, weren’t particularly important figures—they left no trace in Zhai Xinping’s memories, so presumably none of them would meet good ends.
However, after Prince Xin Yang Yuanyan brought chaos to Jinling, Li Zhigao remained active in the Jianghuai region for quite some time.
Li Zhigao’s abilities were certainly stronger than those of Chai Jian, Li Chong, or even the Marquis of Xinchang, Li Pu—he was more pragmatic. More importantly, this segment of history that had yet to occur indicated that Li Zhigao should have developed a clear understanding of the Marquis of Xinchang’s mansion and the Evening Red Tower quite early, and had already prepared to avoid being implicated before the Third Prince was poisoned.
Otherwise, it would be hard to imagine how Li Zhigao could have had a chance to recover if he’d been caught unprepared and implicated.
It was precisely because of this that Han Qian decided to risk persuading Li Zhigao, rather than passively watching the situation deteriorate until he could no longer sustain it and then pack up and flee to Xuzhou. After all, that would be far too passive, with inadequate preparation.
Moreover, if he took no action, who knew when the Marquis of Xinchang’s mansion and the Evening Red Tower would extend their reach and directly seize the Left Bureau from his hands?
Based on his consistent understanding of the Marquis of Xinchang, Li Pu, and the woman in black gauze, that time would definitely not be long in coming.
The guards at all four gates of Xiangzhou were Du Chongtao’s direct troops, but as deputy commander, the Third Prince also received preferential treatment in the Xiangzhou army. After verifying Han Qian and Li Zhigao’s identities, though the gate captain was quite puzzled by their late-night return to Xiangzhou, he didn’t create difficulties and quickly ordered the side gate opened to let Han Qian, Li Zhigao, and their party enter the city.
Through streets and alleys, the hundred-plus riders soon reached Jinxing Ward—Xiangzhou enforced a curfew, and the ward gate had already closed by this hour. But when the duty officer saw Li Zhigao, Han Qian, and Li Chong all returning together, he said nothing and directly opened the heavy ward gate to let them into Jinxing Ward.
Tian Cheng and Yang Qin had led thirty-plus elite scouts from the left and right flanks back earlier. Hearing the approaching hoofbeats, they followed the agreed plan, tidied their armor and weapons, and emerged from the alley to meet them.
“Yang Qin, you guard the ward gate,” Han Qian instructed Yang Qin in a low voice.
Chai Jian had led over a hundred Guard Battalion soldiers to garrison Jinxing Ward with Yang Yuanpu, but with nothing happening, only a few soldiers were guarding the ward gate at this late hour while the others slept soundly. Han Qian had Yang Qin lead twenty men, which was sufficient to control the ward gate.
“Zhigao, Han Qian, why have you both returned? What movements are the Liang army making at Jingzikou?” Chai Jian, hearing that Han Qian and Li Chong had suddenly entered Xiangzhou accompanying Li Zhigao, hurried to the ward gate. Not knowing what had happened, he scrambled from his bed in panic, his armor not even properly fastened, and jogged over to ask nervously.
“It’s a long story. Let’s go see His Highness first, then we’ll explain,” Li Zhigao said in a hoarse voice. “And Internal Attendant Zhang Ping—I heard from Han Qian that Father arranged for him to be at His Highness’s side?”
“Master Zhang is staying in His Highness’s residence. I don’t know if he’s awake yet,” Chai Jian said, unsuspecting, leading Li Zhigao, Li Chong, and Han Qian toward the inner side of the ward compound.
Hearing what Chai Jian had just said, Li Chong’s eyes filled with even more suspicion. Why would Chai Jian think the Liang army at Jingzikou had movements?
What kind of information had that scoundrel Han Qian been passing along? What was he trying to do?
Li Chong frowned, seeing that Han Qian’s men had already secured control of the ward gate. He instinctively gripped the sword at his waist, but looking at those surrounding them—all elite troops his elder brother had trained over the years in the army—he felt reassured again.
Han Qian glanced at the now-suspicious Li Chong but paid him no mind, simply urging Chai Jian onward with Li Zhigao, giving Li Chong no opportunity to question Chai Jian.
The group soon entered the Third Prince Yang Yuanpu’s temporary residence within Jinxing Ward.
Most of the soldiers had already retired for the night and were still in the barracks on both sides of the residence, with only a few soldiers on duty. Yang Yuanpu had also been awakened and had just finished dressing when he came to the front courtyard accompanied by Zhang Ping.
“What exactly happened at Jingzikou?” Yang Yuanpu was still full of resentment over Zhang Ping and Yao Xishui’s uninvited arrival, but he also knew the bigger picture was what mattered.
Zhang Ping frowned at Han Qian, his expression somewhat ugly as he demanded, “Han Qian, you said the Liang army at Jingzikou had movements. Why have you tricked the Vice Commander into rushing back to Xiangzhou?”
He was far more perceptive than Chai Jian or Li Chong. Seeing Li Zhigao and Han Qian enter with Chai Jian, and particularly noticing that Li Zhigao’s loyal guards and the Left Bureau scouts hadn’t remained outside the gate as protocol dictated but had directly entered the residence, he realized something was wrong and questioned them directly.
Li Zhigao stated directly, “The Left Bureau has received reliable intelligence that among the guards remaining with His Highness, some have been bought by Zhao Mingting and may intend to harm His Highness!”
“How is that possible?” Chai Jian found it hard to believe. He stared at Han Qian and demanded, “What evidence do you have?”
The Guard Battalion of the Marquis of Linjiang’s mansion had initially been formed when Emperor Tianyou transferred a hundred elite soldiers from his own personal guard, with Chen De as commander. Later, under Li Zhigao’s leadership, they incorporated the earliest batch of elite veterans from the Dragon Sparrow Army, expanding the battalion to five hundred men.
Chai Jian was the third commander of the Guard Battalion.
The Guard Battalion was one of their most important chess pieces. Every member had been screened and vetted, with the main officers all replaced by their trusted people, and discipline maintained with extreme strictness. How could they have been infiltrated by Anning Palace?
More critically, even if the Left Bureau had uncovered some clues suggesting a few bad apples, Han Qian could have simply reported to them for handling. Why would he need to fabricate an excuse to run to Jingzikou and fetch Li Zhigao for reinforcements?
Could it be that the majority of the hundred-plus guards remaining with them had problems, with hardly anyone reliable?
“I’ve already shown all the evidence to the Vice Commander,” Han Qian said casually, his hand resting on his sword.
“All guards will withdraw outside the residence first. Whether there’s a problem or not will soon become clear,” Li Zhigao said, not giving Chai Jian or Zhang Ping time to react. He directly ordered his men to drive the dozen or so duty guards from the residence out into the alley to await orders.
Chai Jian, Zhang Ping, and Li Chong had no time to react. They could only watch helplessly as the dozen duty guards were driven out, while the Third Prince’s temporary residence, inside and out, came under the control of Li Zhigao’s loyal guards.
At this point, Li Zhigao gestured for everyone to enter the main hall to talk.
Yang Yuanpu was both alarmed and suspicious, not knowing what performance Han Qian and Li Zhigao were staging. Half-believing, he entered the main hall and had just taken his seat in the center.
Before Li Zhigao and Han Qian entered the main hall, they suddenly dropped to their knees with a thud at the entrance.
Yang Yuanpu jumped in fright, somewhat caught off guard as he asked, “Elder Brother, what is the meaning of this?”
“Han Qian says that someone has criticized Zhigao for being disrespectful toward Your Highness. Zhigao was truly anxious and unsettled at Jingzikou, so I rushed back to Xiangzhou overnight with Han Qian to apologize to Your Highness.”
Li Zhigao kowtowed three times with loud thuds, then straightened his back and began removing the robes and armor he wore. In the cold air, he bared his upper body, revealing muscles as solid as iron blocks, and also exposing the thorny branches bound to his back as a sign of seeking punishment for his offense. He kowtowed again, saying, “Perhaps Zhigao’s temperament is too rough, and there were indeed inconsiderate words in the past that I failed to notice myself. I humbly ask Your Highness to punish me!”
Yang Yuanpu still hadn’t figured out what was happening. He stared at Li Zhigao and Han Qian for quite a while, then asked in surprise and doubt, “Elder Brother, how could you have been disrespectful toward me?”
“Then what about Chai Jian and Zhang Ping—have they been disrespectful toward Your Highness?”
Li Zhigao straightened his back, untied the thorny branches bound to it, his tiger-like eyes turning toward Chai Jian and Zhang Ping. Then he respectfully bowed down again, presenting the thorny branches with utmost respect into Yang Yuanpu’s hands, saying, “If these two have been disrespectful toward Your Highness, please punish them for their crime of disrespect!”