Chapter 298 A Dark Cloud Looms Over the Sky, and a Secret Letter

Was Emperor Liu Sheng truly dull, failing to perceive the danger?

Or was he feigning composure, harboring some other scheme?

That night, the moon was dark and the wind high.

A black figure, like a feather, drifted silently into the backyard of the Dingyuan Earls Mansion.

The person who arrived was none other than Hong Niang.

She did not alert anyone and went directly to Emperor Liu Sheng's study.

Emperor Liu Sheng was sitting under the lamp, wiping his personal saber, "Awakening of Insects."

He wiped it very carefully and with great focus, as if it were not a blade, but a rare treasure.

"My Lord."

Hong Niang knelt on one knee, took out a letter sealed with wax from her bosom, and offered it with both hands.

"It was passed out by the 'eyes' in the palace."

Emperor Liu Sheng put down his saber and took the letter.

He did not open it immediately, but instead gently caressed the wax seal on it, which represented a secret court letter.

"You have worked hard," he said indifferently.

Opening the envelope, there was only a thin piece of paper inside.

The handwriting on the paper was very sloppy, evidently written under extremely hasty and dangerous circumstances.

Yet the content was enough to make anyone feel a chill throughout their body.

The letter detailed the conspiracy between the Emperor and the three giants in the side hall that night.

Prime Minister Su Yuandao's public opinion war, Minister of War Jiang Hai's accidental trap, and Superintendent Yu Huatian's assassination order.

Every word reeked of blood and murderous intent.

Emperor Liu Sheng finished reading the letter calmly.

There was no change in his expression; he felt neither anger nor fear.

Only his eyes became deeper than the night outside the window.

Just then, a long-lost system notification sound echoed in his mind.

Unlike before, this time the sound was no longer a cold mechanical voice, but a sharp, ear-piercing alarm.

[Warning: Fatal threat detected!]

[Threat Source: Emperor Zhao Tuo, Grand Secretary Prime Minister Su Yuandao, Minister of War Jiang Hai, Eastern Depot Superintendent Yu Huatian]

[Threat Level: Catastrophic]

[Survival Probability: Extremely Low]

[System Suggestion: ...Run away?]

The system panel flickered with blinding red light before his eyes.

That "extremely low" survival probability and the "run away" suggestion with a questioning tone seemed incredibly comical, yet undeniably real.

Emperor Liu Sheng watched the flickering red light and slowly brought the secret letter in his hand to the candle flame.

The paper curled rapidly, turned black, and finally turned into a wisp of ash.

The last veil of warmth between him and the Emperor was burned away completely at this moment.

What remained was only a life-or-death struggle.

"My Lord, we..."

Hong Niang looked at Emperor Liu Sheng, a trace of worry flashing in her eyes.

A net of heaven and earth had already been cast.

They seemed to have fallen into a desperate situation.

Emperor Liu Sheng, however, smiled.

He stood up, walked to the window, pushed it open, and looked at the heavy night outside.

"Run?"

He whispered to himself.

"Why should I run?"

"This game of chess has only just begun."

The corners of his mouth curled into a cold yet excited arc.

"They want to see me reveal a flaw, so I will give them one."

"They want me to die in an 'accident,' so I will send them an even bigger 'accident'."

A life-or-death struggle was about to begin.

But who was the hunter and who was the prey, it was too early to say.

The air in the study became exceptionally heavy because of the burned secret letter.

Hong Niang remained kneeling on one knee, waiting for Emperor Liu Sheng's order.

She knew that from this moment on, every step they took would be a dance on the tip of a blade.

Emperor Liu Sheng turned around, his gaze as calm as water.

"Get up."

"Yes."

Hong Niang stood up and stood quietly to the side.

Emperor Liu Sheng paced back and forth in the study, his mind rapidly analyzing the current situation.

The Emperor, Prime Minister Su Yuandao, Minister of War Jiang Hai, and Superintendent Yu Huatian.

Imperial power, the Cabinet, the Ministry of War, and the Eastern Depot.

This was almost the entire Great Qi Dynasty's top-tier machinery of violence and power.

They had joined forces to weave a net that seemed to have no flaws.

"Prime Minister Su Yuandao is responsible for creating momentum, ruining my reputation, and leaving me isolated and helpless. This is attacking the heart."

"Minister of War Jiang Hai is responsible for planning, mobilizing troops, and creating accidents. This is an overt scheme."

"Superintendent Yu Huatian is responsible for lurking, surveillance, and assassination, striking a fatal blow. This is a dirty trick."

Emperor Liu Sheng's voice was very soft, as if he were talking to himself, or as if he were analyzing the situation for Hong Niang.

"Attacking the heart, overt schemes, dirty tricks. All three working together, interlocking. It is indeed a good strategy."

He even had a hint of approval in his tone.

"My Lord, how should we respond?" Hong Niang couldn't help but ask.

In her view, this was almost a dead end.

"Since they want to watch a show, we will accompany them and perform one."

Emperor Liu Sheng stopped pacing, a flash of craftiness in his eyes.

"Don't they think I live a luxurious life and engage in massive construction projects?"

He looked at Hong Niang.

"Tomorrow, send someone to the west of the city to buy an abandoned garden. Make a big scene and say that I, the Count, want to build a summer villa there."

"Build a summer villa?" Hong Niang was stunned.

At this critical juncture, not only not restraining himself, but being even more ostentatious? Wouldn't this just hand an excuse to the censors?

"Yes," Emperor Liu Sheng nodded. "Not only build it, but build it on a large scale. Find the best craftsmen and use the best materials. I want everyone in the capital to know that I, Emperor Liu Sheng, even if impeached by ten thousand people, still live a carefree and happy life."

"This is... intentionally provoking them?"

"No," Emperor Liu Sheng shook his head. "This is creating an opportunity for them."

"A summer villa under construction will have many people and mixed crowds. For Minister of War Jiang Hai, isn't it a good place to plant people and create 'accidents'? For example, a roof beam collapsing, a rockery falling."

"For Superintendent Yu Huatian, wouldn't it be much easier to sneak in an assassin than to infiltrate the heavily guarded Earls Mansion?"

Hong Niang understood instantly.

Her Lord was "using their own strategy against them."

He was actively exposing a huge "flaw," a seemingly extremely stupid action, to lure the enemy into making a move.

The enemy thought he had walked into a trap, little did they know, the trap itself was something he had set with his own hands.

"I understand," Hong Niang nodded. "I will go handle it immediately."

"Wait," Emperor Liu Sheng called out to her.

"Having bait is not enough; we also need helpers."

He took a pen from a secret compartment in his desk and wrote a few words on two separate slips of paper.

He folded one of them and handed it to Hong Niang.

"Deliver this, in the most secure way possible, to the hands of the City Defense Battalion Commander, Zhao Feng."

Zhao Feng, a member of the collateral imperial family, was the highest officer of the capital's City Defense Battalion.

Although this man was from the collateral imperial family, his father died early, and he was never valued by the royal family. One year, because he offended a powerful noble, he was almost executed. It was Prince Yan Zhao Gou who discovered him by chance, thought he was a talent, and stepped in to protect him, promoting him all the way to his current position.

He was the most important chess piece that Prince Yan Zhao Gou had planted in the City Defense Battalion.

"Yes." Hong Niang took the slip of paper and carefully tucked it into her bosom.

Emperor Liu Sheng picked up the other slip of paper, looked at the content, and fell into deep thought.

This slip of paper was for Prince Yan Zhao Gou.

But he knew that any communication with the Northern Territory was now under the strict surveillance of the Eastern Depot.

This letter could not be sent out.

He remembered the half of the tiger tally that Prince Yan Zhao Gou had left behind.

"The Black Armor Guards..."

He took out the cold bronze tiger tally from his bosom.

Three thousand heavy cavalry, broken into smaller units, were lurking in the capital region.

This was a force capable of turning the tide at a critical moment.

But how to activate them, how to establish contact with them, was a difficult problem.

Prince Yan Zhao Gou only said it could be mobilized with the tiger tally, but did not tell him the contact code or location.

Acting rashly would only alert the enemy.

"It seems I still have to rely on myself."

Emperor Liu Sheng put the tiger tally away again.

He walked to the wall and took down the saber named "Awakening of Insects."

He slowly unsheathed the blade.

The blade was like a pool of autumn water, gleaming with a chilling light under the candlelight.

"If they want to fight, then let us fight."

He looked at his reflection on the blade, and in those calm eyes, a fierce fighting spirit ignited.

"Hong Niang."

"Your subordinate is here."

"Have the Western Depot Internal Guards enter the highest state of alert."

"Also, screen everyone in the mansion; anyone who is not certain, remove them."

"In addition, go and investigate the new Eastern Depot Superintendent Yu Huatian. What are his preferences, his habits, and what are his... weaknesses?"

One order after another was issued clearly and calmly from Emperor Liu Sheng's mouth.

The entire Dingyuan Earls Mansion, this war machine that had been silent for so long, was quietly activated on this night.

Outside the window, the wind grew stronger.

Blowing the tree shadows and making them sway like a dance of demons.

But the candle flame in the study remained motionless, bright and steady.

Emperor Liu Sheng knew that from the moment he decided to fight back, he no longer had a way out.

Either he would bury all his enemies.

Or he and everything he owned would turn into ashes.