261 Borrowed Blade (1/2)

Chapter 261: Borrowed Blade

Translator: TransnEditor: Transn

On the surface, Prime Minister Shi controlled the government of Shu-lik. However, there were definitely great dangers hidden within.

He didn't agree with the other ministers, but he didn't care. The Prince stood on the side of those ministers which caused the situation to be different. Although the King of Shu-lik was only in his forties, his physical condition was not good. Prime Minister Shi was worried that, once the king died, the Prince would succeed the throne. This would be unfavorable to him, so his idea was to preemptively become the king himself.

The original collaborator that decided this was Shangguan Tian, but he did not yet announced his temptations. The Second Young Master of Golden Roc Fort had suffered a crushing defeat in the competition with the Dragon King. Therefore, Prime Minister Shi quickly changed his mind.

He gave a promise in a secret conversation with the Dragon King: he would fully support the Great Snowmountain after usurping the throne. He will, not only allow passage across their roads, he will also supply grains for the horses, weapons, and armor, however he could not lend them troops. The Shu-lik country could not publicly stand on the side of the Great Snowmountain.

Gu Shenwei asked his military counselor, ”How trustworthy are the words of the Prime Minister?”

Fang Wenshi recalled every detail of his meeting with Prime Minister Shi. ”I want to say that this matter is concluded. Prime Minister Shi has been persuaded by me. If he becomes king, there are eight or nine times out of ten that he will regard Golden Roc Fort as his enemy.”

”What I mean is that this isn't going to be a plot to kill someone, right?”

”Oh.” Fang Wenshi tend to focus on the grand scheme of things, thinking less about details and conscientiously thought for a while before continuing, ”He wants to usurp the throne, this cannot be fake. Hence, he invites you as a killer. It should be sincere, but you must prevent the possibility that he may blame the regicide on the Great Snowmountain after he successfully accomplished his plans.”

This was exactly what Gu Shenwei was worried about. No one is willing to bear the charge of killing their brothers. If Prime Minister Shi turns on them, then the Great Snowmountain would face imminent danger.

After dawn, Fang Wenshi, on behalf of the Dragon King, was to see Prime Minister Shi and brought with him a specific assassination plan. He also put forward two requirements: First, Prime Minister Shi has to write down his promises in black ink on white paper and stamp them with public and private seals. Second, he must provide the details of the guards of the palace. The Dragon King did not want any accidents to occur during the assassination.

Prime Minister Shi quickly agreed to the second article. His own henchmen were among the guards in the palace. He had clearly revealed the guard patrol routes, the times when their shifts will change, the position of the alarms, and so on. After Prime Minister Shi finished writing it all down, he handed it over to Fang Wenshi.

As for the first article, Prime Minister Shi was a bit ambiguous. The Dragon King could not completely trust him, but the Prime Minister also did not want to be so easily handled by others. Furthermore, his commitment to write everything on paper and stamp it with his seal would be ironclad evidence of his rebellion. If any of this ends up in the hands of the King of Shu-lik then it would bring great calamity.

The two bargained like businessmen. Take a step back and I'll let a foot. They struggled for a long time before finally reaching a compromise. Prime Minister Shi wrote all the promises and stamped it with his seal, but did not give it to Fang Wenshi. However, he agreed to hand it over on the day when the assassination plan has been completed.

One hand handed over the money while the other hand received the delivery. Thus, the assassination of the King of Shu-lik was set in motion. The time was set for after the second round of Breaking Obsession in two days and the location was the main hall of the palace.

The Prime Minister's mansion aside, Gu Shenwei was not idle and was running around all day long.

He first went to Xu Xiaoyi. He did not talk about the assassination plan as he only came to inquire for intelligence.

Xu Xiaoyi had received news that Shangguan Tian had lost trust in the Prime Minister, but he did not give up. He immediately sided with the other ministers. Moyang was originally part of the opposition party against Golden Roc Fort, but he became a supporter with the efforts of Shangguan Tian. Compared with the Great Snowmountain's messenger, he held a huge advantage, that is, he could talk privately with the King of Shu-lik. Even if Fang Wenshi was irrefutable, Shangguan Tian was incapable of admiring the subtle influence of the military counselor.

Helping Prime Minister Shi seems to be really the only choice.

After having said that, Xu Xiaoyi secretly lowered his voice. ”Someone wants to see you. Who would you never think of?”

Xu Xiaoyi revealed a hint of smug and felt that it was very rare for Brother Huan to have such a hard time.

”Shangguan Hong.”

Xu Xiaoyi was taken aback at the name that Gu Shenwei had said. ”You... How did you know... have you met him?”

In fact, Xu Xiaoyi showed his own prowess. His expression showed that the person who saw him was a person whom Gu Shenwei was acquainted with. With a little intuition, Gu Shenwei thought of Shangguan Hong almost instantaneously. In fact, he was just the person he wanted to see.

Whether in Golden Roc Fort or in Shu-lik, Shangguan Hong's status was embarrassing. He had been recognized as the son of the Supreme King for several years, yet he still did not receive the title of Young Master. Everyone considered him to be a chess piece within the hands of Lady Meng, and an insignificant piece that was occasionally picked up and used, and then discarded immediately afterwards.

He had followed his second brother to the Shu-lik country, and also took the position of an overseer. Shangguan Tian was so cold to his brother and even treated him like a slave. When he competed with the Dragon King, Shangguan Tian had been hiding beside Prime Minister Shi. Shangguan Hong stayed with the Golden Roc security agency, just like everyone else.

Even the slaves and servants did not take care of this ”Master Hong”, and no one wanted to provoke the Second Young Master's suspicions.

This brought a benefit. Shangguan Hong was a lonely man, and no one paid any attention to anything he does. Because of this, he was able to secretly go see Xu Xiaoyi and ask for the Dragon King, killer Yang Huan. He did not recognize that this man with a small mustache grown across his face was a teenager that came out of Jade City, and even thought that he was one of the Dragon King's men.