Climbing to the Top: A Reborn Queen's Journey-Chapter 527: Assassination (Part 2)
"It’s still unclear." Qin Zhan’s eyes flashed with intense killing intent: "Elder Changning, rest assured and heal your injuries. Yang Shi will root out the internal accomplice and clarify the assassin’s identity and origin."
Meng Dashan picked up the conversation: "The Commandery Princess will certainly take revenge for Elder Changning."
Cui Du heard Jiang Shaohua’s name and became completely alert: "The Commandery Princess is laboring in the Capital City every day, grappling with the great court ministers, while also dealing with the Grand Empress Dowager and the Emperor. Let’s not inform the Commandery Princess about the assassination."
"Such a major event cannot be concealed from the Commandery Princess." Chief Historian Chen said indifferently: "The news was sent out half a day ago. The assassin might have been sent from the Capital City; they resent the Commandery Princess for reorganizing the court or are envious of her formidable power, unable to do anything against her, resorting to such a despicable trick."
Chief Historian Feng angrily joined the conversation: "Publicly, you are an official of the Nanyang Prince Mansion, bearing heavy responsibilities. Privately, you are the fiancé of the Commandery Princess, her beloved. If something happens to you, it would be a heavy blow to both the Commandery Princess and the Nanyang Prince Mansion. The true culprit behind this is indeed a vile scoundrel."
Qin Zhan Meng Dashan, being a military general, started swearing outright.
Liu Hengchang had to cough a few times, interrupting them: "Commander Qin, Commander Meng, please calm down. We still don’t know the truth yet; once the culprit is found, we will ensure he is torn to pieces."
Everyone stayed for a while before leaving, allowing Cui Du to rest peacefully.
Actually, how could Cui Du truly be at ease?
Combining two lifetimes, it was his first time encountering an outright assassination attempt. If Cui Wang hadn’t reacted swiftly, that sword would have struck him right in the chest! Perhaps by now, his body would be cold.
This made him truly feel the ruthlessness of the power struggle within the Da Liang Dynasty. Victory is king; defeat means death.
Jiang Shaohua was unwilling to retreat, always striving forward, not only for her own power but also to preserve Nanyang County’s prosperity and protect everyone in the Nanyang Prince Mansion.
The higher her position, the safer those around her.
As Cui Du let his mind wander wildly, he soon fell into a muddled sleep.
In his dreams, several indistinguishable-faced assassins surrounded him. They said nothing, each holding gleaming blades, advancing fiercely.
Weak and incapable of defending himself, he panicked and wanted to escape, but his legs weakened at the critical moment, causing him to fall to the ground.
A Red Tassel Spear flew over swiftly, shielding him from all the blade flashes.
He opened his eyes and saw the commandery princess’s valiant figure wielding the spear. Her presence kept the storm outside the spear’s reach.
His eyes grew warm, and he whispered softly: "Commandery Princess!"
Commandery Princess! When will you return?
I truly miss you!
When he awoke, it was already the next day. Cui Du used his good right hand to wipe his damp face and grabbed a cloth to wipe again.
The door was pushed open, and Ma Yaosong walked in.
Cui Du and Ma Yaosong were of similar age, familiar with each other, speaking more casually: "Tell me the truth, how severe are my cousin’s injuries really?"
Ma Yaosong replied softly: "Mr. Cui was stabbed in the back, just barely missing his heart and lungs, losing a lot of blood. Doctor Sun and others worked tirelessly overnight to save Mr. Cui’s life."
As long as his life could be saved, it was good.
Cui Du sniffed, indicating for Ma Yaosong to help him up: "I want to see my cousin."
Seeing Cui Du’s spirit wasn’t too bad, Ma Yaosong reached out to help him off the bed. However, as Cui Du’s feet touched the ground, dizziness overwhelmed him.
Startled, Ma Yaosong exclaimed: "You lost quite a bit of blood yesterday too; you must recover for a few days before getting up. Quickly, lie back down!"
Frankly speaking, in the eyes of the Nanyang Prince Mansion officials, Cui Du’s safety was more significant than Cui Wang’s.
Cui Du didn’t try to be brave and lay back down honestly: "Please go see my cousin for me."
Ma Yaosong complied and headed out.
After a while, the door was pushed open again. This time, it was Yang Zheng Yang Shi who entered.
Over the years, Nanyang County had been quite peaceful, with no such dangerous cases for a long time.
Yang Zheng had worked tirelessly for a day and night, with a dry throat and red eyes, and when he spoke, his voice was hoarse: "Elder Changning, all three assassins are dead. However, the inside accomplice at the field manor has been found." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖
Cui Du instinctively tried to sit up, but the movement aggravated his wound, causing intense pain. He cried out, his face turning pale.
Startled, Yang Zheng immediately said: "Don’t get excited, listen to me while lying down."
Cui Du, sweating from the pain, dared not move again.
Yang Zheng indeed had a unique approach to investigating cases. Upon arriving at the field manor, the first thing he did was separate and detain everyone there. Originally, there were over a hundred people at the field manor, and around two hundred farmers came for training and learning. Over the years, many houses had been built at the field manor, barely enough for one person per room.
The Criminal Room consisted of more than a dozen people, each dealing with over twenty individuals. They questioned them one by one. They dealt directly with those who were obviously suspicious and dishonest, beating them with boards and encouraging mutual reporting and exposing.
Consequently, two culprits were identified.
One of them was a low-ranking steward at the field manor. The other was a farmer from Zhi County who came for training and learning.
"The farmer from Zhi County led those three assassins outside the field manor, and the steward let them in. Both were bought with a large sum of money. The person who contacted them was dressed in black, masked, and stealthily entered their house at midnight. They were threatened with knives to their necks, told they would be killed instantly if they didn’t comply and blinded by several ingots of gold, so they agreed."
Intimidation and temptation, both used together—how could an ordinary farmer and a low-ranking steward withstand it?
Cui Du was silent for a moment and then asked: "How should the two of them be dealt with?"
Yang Zheng’s eyes flashed with killing intent: "First report to the Commandery Princess, then behead them for public display! Moreover, their families should be expelled from Nanyang County!"
Not only should they be killed, but the matter should also be spread to scare others. Otherwise, if everyone starts selling out Nanyang County for silver in the future, what would happen?
Cui Du understood the reasoning and did not plead for them, only saying: "Their families are innocent after all; let them leave Nanyang County, but don’t secretly kill them."
Yang Zheng was outwardly unfazed, having been spoken to with his intentions revealed, and said calmly: "The more dead people there are, the more deterrent it becomes."
Cui Du uttered no more words.
...
Several days later, in the Capital City, at the Ministry of Revenue.
Jiang Shaohua had inspected the Ministry of Revenue for several days and surprisingly got along well with Minister Ji, which was quite unexpected.
With the border army preparing for battle, the Ministry of Revenue was busy preparing supplies. Minister Ji even opted not to go home, directly staying at the Ministry of Revenue.
Jiang Shaohua accompanied Minister Ji and others, busy until nighttime, only having dinner before leaving the Ministry of Revenue.
Jiang Shaohua’s good mood vanished entirely upon receiving Chief Historian Chen’s letter.
Her expression suddenly darkened, her eyes filled with murderous intent.
