465 Utilization (1/2)

Ju Chi sat in the dark room in a daze. He didn't understand the Dragon King's behavior, and hated his own cowardice. ”I should have stood up and taken responsibility for it, then the midwife wouldn't have been taken away.

”We're partners.” He blamed himself.

Soon, he comforted himself, ”I had no choice. The midwife doesn't know very many secrets, so she won't get others involved. But if I got caught, dozens of people would be killed once I failed to withstand torture.”

”However, the Dragon King knows everything.” Thinking of this, he could feel his heart beat faster. He had once been afraid of the Dragon King's saber and sword, but now he was more scared of his eyes. The Dragon King seldom fixed his eyes on him, but he found the Dragon King's eyes were like sharp daggers and his secrets would be exposed to him once their eyes met.

Ju Chi had considered slitting his throat, but he couldn't find a weapon. He had also planned to knock himself out against the wall but gave up, for he was being closely watched by the guards at the gate.

When the Dragon King turned up, Ju Chi was extremely relieved. He wouldn't have to live in fear and self-reproach much longer.

The guards left, leaving the Dragon King and Ju Chi alone in the room.

Standing opposite the injured guard, Gu Shenwei felt sick about what he was going to do next. ”Why do people keep secrets? Why can't we solve problems through a deal or fight?” he wondered.

Knowing this was naive, Gu Shenwei adjusted his mind quickly. He began, ”You're the 14th descendant of the founder of the Stone Kingdom. According to seniority, you're the current King of the Stone nation's uncle.”

”I didn't know the Dragon King is so interested in the genealogy of the Ju family,” Ju Chi said. He tried to be calm but failed. He knew no one could save him. He proceeded, ”I will tell you nothing. Just kill me.”

Gu Shenwei got closer and whispered to him, ”You have no idea what death is. You don't know the pain a man feels when he's stabbed by a saber or a sword. Or the fear he feels when he finds himself passing away. You don't know how panicked and helpless your family will be when they are told of your death. You don't know if they will be homeless and die in a dirty ditch before next winter. And all of this will happen if you don't treasure your life.”

Ju Chi's face convulsed. He stared at the young man in front of him with anger and frustration in his eyes. He shouted, ”You're lying. They... Someone will take care of my family.”

”No, they won't,” Gu Shenwei said, shaking his head. Words were like weapons and they were as difficult to master as Death Scripture. Even after years of practice, he still couldn't claim himself a master in this field. ”Anyone who offers a hand to your family is your accomplice. Once I find them, I will declare them guilty immediately. In this way, the rest will avoid your family like the plague.”

Ju Chi grabbed the chair's armrest tightly. He overused his strength; blood gushed out from the wound on his left arm. He cried, ”You are a demon and you won't rule Xiaoyao Lake for long. You will be killed before my family gets hurt.”

”So is this your plan?” Gu Shenwei asked in a softer tone. He stepped back and said in an amiable tone, ”You plan to collude with the Golden Roc Fort to defeat the Dragon army and kill me before the war.”

Ju Chi replied in disdain, ”Both you and the Golden Roc Fort are invaders. We wouldn't collude with them. We...” When he realized he had said too much, he shut his mouth immediately.

”Do you think you can keep me in the dark?” Gu Shenwei asked.

Ju Chi was ashamed he had leaked information. ”I shouldn't be irritated by the Dragon King. I'm several years senior to him.” He reflected. Then, he lowered his head and decided to hold his tongue.

”Since you're reluctant to tell me the truth, I will assume I'm right,” Gu Shenwei said confidently. In fact, he didn't know much about their plan.

A couple of days ago, Xu Xiaoyi and Zhong Heng had collected the intelligence. It was said that recently a hidden force of soldiers from the five kingdoms was planning to take action and fight against the Dragon army. But it didn't mention specifics.

If this murder hadn't taken place in the palace, Ju Chi would not have been exposed.

”You should know that civilians in the Stone Kingdom long to live a peaceful life and they hate war. Especially when both parties aren't kingdoms from Xiaoyao Lake. So you are planning to utilize their dissatisfaction.”

Ju Chi raised his head to glimpse at the Dragon King, and then lowered his head immediately without a word. Observing his response, the Dragon King knew his assumption was correct.

Gu Shenwei's theory was based on the intelligence he had gotten. Every day he would receive a large amount of information and most of it was regarding civilians and soldiers. Important matters were rarely ever mentioned. But with this intelligence, he could know the real thoughts of the civilians and soldiers of the five kingdoms.

”In the past, military forces in the five kingdoms were weak. Currently there are approximately 20,000 armed soldiers, but they don't belong to the five kingdoms,” he continued for he had confidence in his theory. ”So you thought soldiers in the five kingdoms should fight for their own kingdoms instead of for the Dragon King. You found that many people had the same point of view as you. You joined hands and intended to steal control of the troop of 20,000 soldiers.”

Ju Chi lowered his head so as not to betray his thoughts. He was sure that the Dragon King was a demon who could discover people's thoughts through their expressions and behavior.

”You don't want to see the war break out. If I win this war, it will be very difficult for you to incite civilians to rebel against me. You will face a huge loss in soldiers. You hate both outcomes. Therefore, you are planning a rebellion before the war.”

Ju Chi trembled with fear. He even suspected there were traitors in their organization.

”You needed an excuse for the rebellion, one which could arouse rage amongst the masses. Then you found the perfect person, the court maid who had had your king's child. But as a decedent of the Ju family, you didn't want to sacrifice the unborn baby who has the blood of your king. So you found another pregnant woman and disguised her as the court maid, and then killed her to arouse public outcry. If your plan is successful and the Dragon King dies, the 20,000 troops will belong to the five kingdoms. At that time, you plan to bring the pregnant court maid to the public and no one will mind your little trick.”