The tall building overlooked the entirety of West Liang. Ning Cheng was sitting lazily on the railing, completely unconcerned with the bustling city below him and its myriad of lights.
He held a golden needle in his mouth and his gaze was somewhat wandering, as if he was lost in thought. At this time, he was not like when he was in the Baili Chamber of Commerce, nor was he as cold and mature as when he was in the imperial court. His cold and handsome facial features revealed a hint of evil and cunning, and he was much more lazy.
It was impossible to tell what he was thinking, but his lips curved up into a cold smile. It was both playful and disdainful, a complex mix of emotions.
What was it that he was playful about, but disdainful of?
Probably only he knew.
"So Your Highness Duke of Ning was hiding here. You've made me look for you," Chu Qingge suddenly came upstairs.
Ning Cheng glanced at her before ignoring her. His Cold Face looked down at the imperial city.
"Your Highness Duke of Ning, has my elder brother come to find you? I heard Duanmu Yao's been gone for days and hasn't returned yet, "Chu Qingge asked next. Duanmu Yao had been investigating Empress Xue's death in the Chu Clan barracks, but had suddenly left for some unknown reason. She hadn't yet returned, so Empress Xue's case had been delayed.
Chu Qingge had been keeping an eye on the situation and wanted to see Chu Tianyin multiple times to give him ideas. Unfortunately, he didn't want to see her. In his eyes, she was nothing but a traitor. She was too lazy to explain herself or argue. She knew she'd wronged the Chu Clan, but they were the ones who wronged her first, weren't they?
Chu Tianyin ignored her, but there was still Ning Cheng! As long as Ning Cheng nodded, Chu Tianyin would have to do as he was told. The two elders of the Chu Clan were still locked up in prison, while Chu Tianyin was a filial son. How would he dare defy Ning Cheng?
"What, when did you start caring about the Chu Clan troops?" Ning Cheng was still looking down with a mocking smile.
As soon as Chu Qingge saw him, she'd either ask him about Long Fei Ye or Han Yunxi. He was already sick of her. If he hadn't been distracted by her footsteps, he would've run away long ago.
"Chu Clan Army?"
Chu Qingge was leaning lazily against the railing. Her dazzling golden empress dowager robes didn't hide her natural aloofness, because even now, her heart was still high above the masses.
"This consort only cares about His Highness King Ning. After all … this consort and His Highness King Ning are bound together for good or ill. As for the Chu Clan Army … that's my elder brother's problem. "
Chu Qingge lazily rose to her feet and took a step closer to Ning Cheng. In a self-mocking tone, she said, "A married daughter is like spilled water."
If this was the past, Ning Cheng would still glance at Chu Qingge and compare her to Han Yunxi. After all, they were both women who liked Long Fei Ye, so they shouldn't be too far off.
If you know yourself and your enemy, you will never be defeated. Even if you don't know Long Fei Ye, you should at least know what kind of women liked him. But now Ning Cheng couldn't even be bothered to look at Chu Qingge. In fact, he even rejected her approach.
He'd never thought about women before, so he couldn't understand how two women of similar ages could be so far apart from each other.
"Duke of Ning?"
Chu Qingge called out. Only then did Ning Cheng recover his senses and realize he'd spaced out again.
Dammit!
Despite his irritation, his face was still as cold as ice. He pulled away from Chu Qingge and asked, "Stop wasting words. What did you find your lordship for?"
Chu Qingge was waiting for those exact words. She got straight to the point and said, "If my elder brother can't deal with Duanmu Yao, why don't I do it instead?"
"You?" Ning Cheng was surprised.
"Mm!" Chu Qingge nodded confidently. "I grew up with Duanmu Yao. We practiced martial arts together and studied together. I know her personality better than anyone."
If Chu Qingge hadn't mentioned it, Ning Cheng would've overlooked this point.
Women always understood other women better than men, so it would be easier for a woman to deal with another woman than a man.
"What brilliant plan do you have?" Ning Cheng asked.
Chu Qingge smiled and gestured for Ning Cheng to come closer, but Ning Cheng refused without hesitation. "There's no one else here, so just say it."
Chu Qingge's lips curved into a self-mocking smile. I must be missing that man too much. I'm actually trying to find traces of him on Ning Cheng's body.
"As long as we frame Han Yunxi for Empress Xue's assassination, Duanmu Yao will definitely believe us. Moreover, she'll definitely investigate to the end!" Chu Qingge said.
As much as she hated Han Yunxi, Duanmu Yao hated Han Yunxi as much as she did. Her hatred would only grow! Most importantly, Duanmu Yao could bring the matter to Kenzō's ears.
That way, even with Long Fei Ye's protection, Han Yunxi would still be in a lot of trouble. She had often heard Duanmu Yao say that Long Fei Ye treated Kenzō's elders with utmost respect and had never disobeyed him.
Many times, her close friends had discussed marriage, but Duanmu Yao had always been smug and claimed that her master would uphold justice for her. In other words, the Kenzō's elders were trying to matchmake the two of them.
"Duke of Ning, as long as you and my big brother cooperate well and produce some evidence, Duanmu Yao will definitely believe us."
When Ning Cheng didn't reply, Chu Qingge added, "I believe that Duanmu Yao will not only believe us, but add oil to the fire to make Han Yunxi's crimes a reality. Let Duanmu Yao and Han Yunxi fight it out. You and Chu Tianyin can just watch the show. "
"You're so sure?" Ning Cheng was intrigued.
He had been keeping tabs on Empress Xue's affairs as well. Although Long Fei Ye hadn't made any moves, he had long suspected that Long Fei Ye had something to do with the assassination attempt.
Besides Western Zhou, the only other enemy of the Chu and Ning Clans was Long Fei Ye. As for Long Tianmo, he didn't care at all.
Western Zhou's imperial clan wouldn't be so ruthless as to kill the empress to sow discord between the Chu Clan and Celestial Mountain. Only Long Fei Ye was the prime suspect.
Chu Tianyin cooperated with Duanmu Yao's investigation while Ning Cheng sent his own men to investigate in secret as well. Unfortunately, they hadn't found any evidence yet.
"Duke of Ning, why don't we … make a bet?" Chu Qingge smiled. She was worried that Ning Cheng wouldn't agree.
But Ning Cheng simply nodded his head. "Alright, let's do that!"
He immediately ordered someone to summon Chu Tianyin. Chu Qingge was secretly delighted. "Then I won't disturb you two any longer."
Chu Qingge's face turned vicious as she turned around.
Ning Cheng had told her before that he'd help her deal with Han Yunxi as long as she betrayed the Chu Clan. But Ning Cheng had been vague and vague all the time. He hadn't even told her how to deal with Han Yunxi or how to kidnap Han Yunxi.
Now she understood that Ning Cheng was just trying to cheer her up. Rather than wait for Ning Cheng to make his move, it was better for her to come up with her own ideas. As long as Ning Cheng cooperated, everything would be fine.
On the surface, she was helping the Chu and Ning Clans solve their problems, but in truth, she was putting Han Yunxi to death.
She was certain that once Duanmu Yao found out that Han Yunxi was Empress Xue's murderer, she'd definitely make a fuss before Kenzō. Based on how much Old Kenzō doted on Duanmu Yao, even Long Fei Ye wouldn't be able to protect Han Yunxi!
Chu Qingge descended the stairs step by step, finally feeling better after two years of depression. She was waiting. It hadn't been easy for her to become Tianning's empress dowager, but she wasn't just going to take Han Yunxi's life.
Long Fei Ye, one day, I, Chu Qingge, will have the right to stand shoulder to shoulder with you!
Chu Qingge hadn't left long before Chu Tianyin arrived.
He didn't agree with Chu Qingge's demand for equal footing, so he dropped to one knee as soon as he arrived. "Greetings to Your Highness Duke of Ning."
His father and uncle were both in Ning Cheng's hands, while the Chu Clan troops had surrendered. Ever since Ning Cheng had rescued him, Chu Tianyin had taken the stance of pledging his loyalty to him to the death.
Ning Cheng was still leaning against the railing, but gave him a sidelong glance. He didn't allow him to rise. "I haven't seen you around the army these past few days. Where did you go?"
"I went around the borders of Yaoshui. Long Fei Ye only has 3,000 troops stationed there," Chu Tianyin replied honestly.
"What about the other troops?" Ning Cheng finally grew serious.
"They're all south of Yaoshui, but 3,000 troops are enough. He won't return Yaoshui Prefecture to Western Zhou, "Chu Tianyin said.
Ning Cheng laughed coldly. "Obviously!"
Chu Tianyin hid his anger deep in his eyes as he lowered his head in silence.
"Has Duanmu Yao returned yet?" Ning Cheng asked next.
"No news yet. Empress Xue's death was suspicious. She had no injuries or illnesses, nor any signs of poison. It'll be difficult to convince her that an assassination attempt was behind it, "Chu Tianyin added.
"You need to get involved in this matter." Ning Cheng was ordering him, not negotiating. He didn't give Chu Tianyin any leeway. "It's been so many years. Have you found any traces of the Shadow Clan?"
"Duke of Ning, do you have an idea about Empress Xue's death?" Chu Tianyin probed.
Unfortunately, Ning Cheng ignored him. "Answer your lordship's question."
The Shadow Clan. Only Gu Beiyue was left of the Shadow Clan. Gu Beiyue was his only hope! How could Chu Tianyin betray Gu Beiyue?
He was still hoping to use Gu Beiyue to borrow Long Fei Ye's strength to bite back at Ning Cheng!
From what he understood of Ning Cheng, the man would never let go of his father and uncle. The Chu Clan troops would remain beneath his Ning Clan troops, while the Nether Clan would remain beneath the Di Clan.
He couldn't accept this!
Ever since Chu Qingge's marriage alliance with Tianning, he'd fought against Long Fei Ye and tried all sorts of ways to bewitch Emperor Tianhui to prepare Chu Qingge's path. His father and uncle even found Medical City's Head Elder Ling to do something as immoral as inducing labor. They'd spent so much time and effort and paid so much just so they could break away from Western Zhou's imperial clan and gain a foothold in Cloud Realm Continent. They'd wanted to use Tianning as a stronghold and revive Western Qin in the name of gathering the world's heroes to seize power.
But all of their efforts had ended up in Ning Cheng's hands. In other words, Ning Cheng had stepped over the corpses of his Chu Clan's archers to ascend to the position of regent.
He refused to accept this, much less accept it!
He was very clear that the Chu Clan's current strength was too weak to fight for anything else. The only thought in his heart was revenge!
Even if he had to work with his former rival Long Fei Ye, he still wanted to drag Ning Cheng off his throne and stomp him beneath his feet.
When his father and uncle found out that the Ning Clan was the former Di Clan, they hadn't told Gu Beiyue or Gu Beiyue's origins to Ning Cheng.
He hadn't betrayed Gu Beiyue even after being tortured by Long Fei Ye, so he'd never betray Gu Beiyue in front of Ning Cheng.
He stared into Ning Cheng's eyes and said seriously, "The Shadow Clan has long died out."
A flash of grief flashed past Ning Cheng's eyes, but he pretended to be relaxed with a smile. "What a pity. Do you have any leads on Western Qin's imperial orphan? "
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