Chapter 1080 – Blind Chess (1/2)
Chapter 1080 – Blind Chess
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Shang Xingzhou asked, ”Why is it him?”
Xu Yourong answered, ”Because he will be the new sovereign.”
This battle had been triggered by the alliance between her and Yuren. If Shang Xingzhou was the one to win at the end, the emperor would have to be changed.
Prince Chen Liu was the best candidate, and he was the one that Shang Xingzhou had already chosen.
Shang Xingzhou did not deny this. He calmly said, ”Correct, he is the best amongst all the rest of Emperor Taizong's descendants, although he is inferior to His Majesty.”
Xu Yourong asked, ”I wish to know, are you really willing to give up on His Majesty, even though you spent twenty-some years pouring your heart and soul into raising him?”
Shang Xingzhou was quiet for a while, then he said, ”If His Majesty truly was convinced by you, then I must give him up.”
Xu Yourong asked, ”Did you ever think that my visit to the palace last night might have been a feint?”
Shang Xingzhou replied, ”His Majesty did not write a letter to Luoyang.”
Many days had already passed, enough to write a very sincere letter.
But he had not received one.
Xu Yourong understood his meaning.
This was precisely the result she had wanted to see.
Thus, Prince Chen Liu had to die.
If he died, then even if Shang Xingzhou did win this battle, who would become emperor?
Those ambitious princes of the Chen clan would naturally drag the entire Human race into chaos.
What meaning would there be in Shang Xingzhou's continuing to fight this battle?
It was clearly early spring, but the wind was chilly and seemed devoid of warmth.
The Mausoleum of Books was covered in green trees, but the bushes lining the Divine Path were covered in dust and appeared listless.
Shang Xingzhou looked beyond the Mausoleum of Books, inspecting the several plumes of dust in the distance. He knew that the black-armored cavalry were still an hour away, but his expression remained easygoing.
”He is an outstanding youth. It's not easy to kill him.”
”I've known him since I was little. I know that he's extremely cautious and always leaves a path of retreat whenever he does anything.”
”Yes, the aspect in which he is still far inferior to Emperor Taizong is that at several crucial moments, he lacks the courage to directly face blood.”
Shang Xingzhou turned to Xu Yourong and said, ”And you have found his escape path?”
Xu Yourong softly confirmed, ”Correct.”
A gentle wind blew through the streets. Those buildings burdened by the dust of history had learned long ago how to remain unmoved by so-called major events.
The princely estates along the Road of Peace were extremely quiet, perhaps because their masters had all gone to the Mausoleum of Books.
Prince Chen Liu had not. He remained, sitting in the reception hall of the estate and quietly sipping tea.
Glimpses of the experts of the princely estate could be seen outside the window.
The tea in his porcelain bowl gradually cooled, just like the fingers he used to hold the bowl.
He gently placed the tea bowl back on the table and subtly glanced at the base of the window.
The ground there was paved with gray bricks, one of them a little glossier than the rest.
His path of retreat was not the rear gate. On the contrary, in times like these, the rear gate was often the most dangerous location.
The path of retreat that Prince Chen Liu had arranged for himself was right beneath that brick, a tunnel that led to a canal of the Luo River.
Starting from the previous dynasty, the Road of Peace had been the residence of the powerful nobility. Those nobles, lusting for power and fearful of surprises, had dug out countless tunnels.
After Zhou Tong took power over the Department for Purging Officials, he had dug out even more tunnels.
Those tunnels were as dense as a spider web. Other than himself, no one could understand them.
……
……
”There's also Mo Yu.”
Shang Xingzhou said to Xu Yourong, ”So-called paths of retreat truly are liable to become dead ends.”
Xu Yourong replied, ”Yes, so Prince Chen Liu will die.”
……
……
Three years ago, when the capital was shrouded in snow, Chen Changsheng killed his way into the alley of the Northern Military Department and Zhou Tong fled into the prison underground.