643 King Rizhu (1/2)
The men were killing each other while the women were secretly taking control of the Royal Court. Gu Shenwei was willing to be an observer and wait for an opportunity; additionally, he was very curious as to how far Lotus could go.
There was no need for Lotus to act personally and join in on any assassinations taking place in the Royal Court, but she had still invited the Dragon King to join her in hopes of convincing this stubborn killer through reality.
She believed that the Dragon King belonged to the dark night, the shadows, and her.
Gu Shenwei saw that the chaos of the Royal Court had gradually gone out of control as Lotus had expected. The lords had tried to call for a truce but the messengers they sent were either killed or had disappeared, causing more panic.
But Lotus felt that it wasn't enough. She wanted to unleash an inferno of vengeance, regardless of the consequences.
Looking at the fallen killer, King Kuari suddenly understood why Golden Roc Castle wasn't able to kill the Dragon King. The killers of the Unique King had a deep-rooted preconception that Yang Huan was from the castle so his thinking and behavior must conform to the killer's principles. In fact, from the very day of his defection, the Dragon King had already broken past the yoke of the killer.
The killer had said that the Dragon King would come and so he did. The killer had also said that he would only bring two or three people with him but he had come with seven or eight. The killer had said the assassins would approach in circles but they had simply walked straight in. The killer said the tent was heavily guarded but he had collapsed with none of the hidden guards he mentioned showing up.
'I'm really stupid.' King Kuari blamed himself for the first time in his life in his heart. 'I knew that we should not have underestimated the Dragon King but I was still influenced by Golden Roc Castle and only treated him as a relatively formidable killer'.
He leaned over and looked at his general. ”You've done your best. It's just that you're not that capable.”
The badly wounded general was full of urgency and shame. Not only had he failed to fulfill the task assigned by the lord but he had also became a tool for the assassins before he died. He wanted to say something but didn't want to waste his energy on words, so he staggered to his feet and spread his arms to protect the lord.
No one did anything. The general took a deep breath but wasn't able to breathe out, and then fell to the ground, dead.
King Kuari straightened himself and looked at King Shengri, the only person who had a status equal to him in the tent. ”This is a great empire, and I hope you can live up to its reputation. Think about the lineage of the Khan which has lasted for over three hundred years when you bow to an outsider.”
He turned to the Dragon King next. ”Loyalty is a good thing but it may not be useful. Now I understand what the Dragon King has done in the Western Regions. You left your loyalty aside when you sit at the chessboard and you are right to do so. I underestimated you and I apologize for that. If I could do it again, I would choose you as my ally.”
Gu Shenwei nodded slightly. He had seen many scenes of people about to die and King Kuari was undoubtedly the calmest one, not debasing his status as a king. Although Gu Shenwei still would not choose to ally with him if everything happened all over again, that didn't affect his respect towards this king.
King Kuari turned again, this time to to the beautiful but indifferent strange woman. ”Let me guess, you must be Lotus, the Master Commander of the Waning Moon Hall.”
Nobody answered, which meant that his guess was right. ”Is the Khan dead? Alas, I thought that the Waning Moon Hall hadn't infiltrated the palace. Excuse me, how did I lose?”
Lotus began to explain, mostly because she wanted to tell the Dragon King. ”Your Herald betrayed you long ago. He never passed any orders to King Riyao. That lord is still waiting for your orders to make a move. The battle situation in the frontline wasn't good so your entourage also defected and colluded with the assassins to plot against your general, which created the fiasco your army is in.”
King Kuari nodded, ”The loyalty earned at one's prime time becomes the price of betrayal when one falls into decline. It's really of little use.” But he was still a bit confused and asked, ”Why? I wonder.”
King Kuari spread his arms and pointed at Lotus and King Shengri, not understanding why a pure-blooded son of the Khan would bow to a woman who was not even a herdsman of the Norland.
King Shengri, who was silent and wearing a sympathetic smile on his face, suddenly said, ”My nephew is very talkative. He can preach about his big ideas for three days and nights, but are we going to wait the whole time?”
”It's okay to wait a little longer.” Lotus had no intention of taking King Shengri's request. ”The Norland holds great power but doesn't have the right person to command it. That's why.”
King Kuari felt humiliated and then said the last words of his life. ”Who's going to kill me?”
A woman with a smile came up to him. King Kuari was affected and habitually smiled back. But he still wanted to protest, hoping the other side could have the Dragon King do it so that his death would be worthy of his identity, but the woman acted faster than he expected.
King Shengri's face stiffened. ”A scion of the Khan, a king,” he muttered as if he were the only living person in the tent. ”There's a saying, 'The blood of the Khan will never end, a drop of it will always flow and grow into a river'.”
”That prophecy will come true,” said Lotus coldly. She had chosen King Shengri as her temporary puppet because he was the weakest and had no choice but to accept her harsh conditions. ”Blood will flow over the ground like water soon in the Royal Court. Will King Riyao avenge King Kuari?”
”Yes.” King Shengri came to his senses. This was not the time to feel sad about the loss of his family members. ”Although King Riyao is an elder, he worshipped this nephew and believed everything he said.”
”Cut off his head and send it to him, and then spread the news that the Dragon King was the assassin.”
Gu Shenwei was one step closer to being forced to join the Waning Moon Hall and he began to seriously consider whether to marry Lotus or not. He had been thinking about this matter ever since Han Fen had told him the truth.