Vol 4 Chapter 1 (2/2)

“My lord, what do you think we should do?”

What to do? You lot have already forced me into a corner, yet you still ask me what to do?

Of course, the reason why Feng Xiao is going this far is not to make life difficult for me. She has an end goal in mind with this.

Though the report did not mention it, but the responsibility Che Zhou’s death has been conclusively placed on Liu Xuan De. If I just feign ignorance and leave it be, then my position in Court will be tenuous. All the fear and pressure I have been exerting on them will all become naught in a very short time.

So, to prevent all this, I only have one path left before me.

“We can only launch an offensive on Xuan De. From the present situation, it looks like he has willfully murdered a high level official.” Every word that I said was probably perfectly predicted by Feng Xiao. The very reason why she leaked that piece of news was to force me to attack Xuan De and give me a legitimate reason to do so.

From an objective perspective, it is indeed a good scheme.

Not only can I get rid of a dangerous element, I can also strengthen my control over the Imperial Court.

And the very reason why she did not discuss this with me beforehand is because she knows I will never agree to it.

And now that she has done it already, I have no choice but to move according to her script.

Feng Xiao is truly formidable indeed.

“Alright, I’ll send someone to dispatch the troops.” Feng Xiao said ans then waved her hand. As though they were waiting for this very moment, 2 figures sprang out of the gra.s.s immediately and disappeared before I could see who they were. Feng Xiao then dusted herself before getting onto her pony, “Then I’ll be–”

“Halt.” I said as I placed my horsewhip horizontally across from her and stopped her.

“Un? What is it, my lord?” Feng Xiao turned to look at me with a very meaningful smile.

Reflected in her eyes should be my troubled face. I can’t even be sure if I can show a surface smile at this time.

“Why do you have to go this far? Haven’t I talked about this before.” I looked ahead, not at Feng Xiao, as I asked vexedly.

Feng Xiao gave a ‘hm hm’ and then brough her pony around my horsewhip.

“… I don’t dislike Lord Liu Bei. Rather, as a woman, I feel that Lord Liu Bei is a kind and dependable man. If I’m correct, my lord should feel the same way as well.”

“I, I don’t really…”

“But,” Feng Xiao was by now past my horsewhip and she continued in a completely solemn tone that was unusual for her, “You are my lord, and I must think about things from a holistic perspective and weigh the gains and losses from that perspective. Leaving aside how I think, shouldn’t my lord be considering things from this angle as well?”

As she said so, she prepared to make her pony gallop off.

“Feng Xiao, one last question.” I stopped her again just as she was about to leave, “Was Che Zhou really killed by Xuan De?”

“…” Feng Xiao did not say anything. Perhaps she did not plan on giving me an answer or perhaps she felt that it was something I could investigate on my own.

But in the end, for some reason, she still said it, “In the latest report that just came in, Lord Liu Bei said that Che Zhou was killed by a stray arrow. He has since given her a fitting funeral and burial for her t.i.tle of General of the Cavalry and Chariots. Presently, he is stationed in Xu state.”

As for whether he killed her, it’s up to you my lord.

As she said so, she whipped her pony into a gallop. As I rode on my horse, a deep-seated dissatisfaction filled me. I firmly believe that Xuan De did not kill her. As for Che Zhou’s death, though it was something unexpected, it’s not something that was unusual. Objectively speaking, it’s Cheng Yu who should be punished for ordering Che Zhou to a.s.sa.s.sinate Xuan De. But Che Zhou’s death was not because of this, so there’s no point pursuing this point any further.

I eventually got tired of sitting on a horse and got off and walked back to my mansion.

The next day, after all the preparations were made, I led my troops for Xu state with complicated feelings.

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