Chapter 81 Feigning Death

Chapter 81: Feigned Death

The emperor is dead?

These words kept slamming into each other in Jiang Wang's mind.

The color instantly drained from his face, his head was about to split open.

How could he have been completely in the dark?

The carriage driver was terrified by Jiang Wang's deathly pale face. He hurriedly supported Jiang Wang, swearing that every word was true.

"My lord, what's the matter? I never lie! My second cousin serves as a guard in a high official's residence in Zhaojing. He has already fled the capital and told us we should also save up money and get out fast."

The driver quickly added, not knowing that this very addition cut Jiang Wang even deeper.

The clamorous cicada chirps instantly faded away completely, leaving only a hollow, silent buzzing reverberating deep within his brain.

It felt as if a huge chunk had been hollowed out of Jiang Wang's chest, then filled with something heavy and dull, aching, as if all his internal organs had shifted.

He tried to stand up, but his legs seemed not his own, like jelly and wouldn't obey him.

Xiao Yan...

He had no idea how long it was before the cicadas started chirping again, their sounds re-entering his ears, but now raspy, like they were tearing apart.

Jiang Wang didn't know how he left that place and returned to his room.

He took out the letter he had carefully kept in a box. Xiao Yan's handwriting was still as bold and forceful as ever, the date clearly marked just half a month ago.

How could it be... in such a short time...

How could it...

Jiang Wang's heart felt as if gripped by a large hand. His eyes stung, a crystal-clear teardrop welling up, on the verge of falling.

Yet the next moment, he seemed to suddenly think of something. His pupils contracted sharply, all the blood in his body seemed to rush backwards instantly, only to surge back to his limbs with the next heartbeat.

He had just been overwhelmed by the news, his brain short-circuited, unable to think.

Beixiang's troop movement might be true, but the emperor's death was definitely false.

Someone as clever as Xiao Yan, a man of endless schemes, how could he possibly be dead?

Jiang Wang's heart began to beat wildly, the hand holding the letter quivering with frantic excitement.

That tear filled with sorrow moments ago now surged out violently with the relief of a narrow escape, blurring his vision.

Even if Xiao Yan were to die, he would surely go out in a blaze of glory. How could he possibly be angered to death just upon hearing about Beixiang's military move?

Xiao Yan had been feigning illness before, and his sudden "demise" now just didn't add up.

This must be his scheme.

He spread the false news of his own death to lure Chang Wenji into making a move.

Zhaojing must already be in turmoil.

*

Thick, long white mourning drapes cascaded down from the palace eaves, engulfing the vermilion pillars and gilded plaques.

Sunlight filtering in from outside passed through layers of white gauze, becoming a murky, grayish-white light.

A massive golden *nanmu* wood coffin sat right in the center of Cangwu Hall. Dozens of white candles, as thick as forearms, burned on either side of the coffin. The candle flames flickered constantly with the movement of people coming and going, the rising wisps of smoke dissipating directly into the air.

From civil and military officials down to eunuchs and palace maids, everyone was clad head to toe in plain white mourning garments.

In such a solemn atmosphere, no one dared to speak loudly, even walking was done quietly. Only when kneeling before the coffin to kowtow would a few suppressed sobs be heard.

Of course, the most dramatic mourner had to be Xiao Yan's "partner in crime," Fang Fengshi.

No one knew where such a tall, strapping man got so many tears. He stayed by the coffin all day, refusing to leave, supposedly passing out from weeping half a dozen times a day.

Some bolder officials, based on his strange behavior, had even begun to speculate whether their relationship was more than just sovereign and minister, perhaps even like brothers.

In the secret chamber of Cangwu Hall, Fang Fengshi gave Xiao Yan a frustrated kick.

"You hide in this secret chamber, not going anywhere, yet you make me use this pretext to come down and pass messages for you! Look at these terrible ideas you came up with; you've ruined my reputation!"

"What does it have to do with me? Your reputation wasn't good to begin with," Xiao Yan glanced at Fang Fengshi and replied airily. "Who made the entrance to this secret chamber so cunningly hidden? It's usually hard to detect, but the 'mourning hall' just happens to occupy this spot. You're my only option."

"You!..."

Fang Fengshi's words swirled in his mouth before he silently swallowed them back. That wasn't wrong.

His reputation as a "playboy" was already widely known. A few more rumors now wouldn't make much difference.

After all, when you have many lice, you don't fear the itch.

Moreover, he truly was the only one who could help Xiao Yan with this matter now, being the most reasonable choice both in terms of relationship and motive.

After the brief banter, Xiao Yan turned serious.

"Has Old General Fang finished negotiating with Beixiang's new chieftain?"

"You might not trust me to get things done, but you can absolutely trust my father."

Fang Fengshi patted his chest. His father was the pillar stabilizing Beixiang.

After all those years stationed at the border, he was even more familiar with Beixiang's terrain than with Zhaojing's.

Even if Beixiang changed its chieftain, his father would still beat them into submission.

And this new chieftain knew how to trim his sails to the wind.

Not only did he not fight Fang Zhenbo, he even presented the Dajing spies uncovered during their internal strife to Old General Fang.

This both tightened his grip on his men, consolidating his own leadership position, and gave Fang Zhenbo a favor.

This was also the signal he sent to the outside world: Beixiang and Dajing, as neighboring countries, would maintain eternal peace.

However, Old General Fang suppressed this signal, held it down tightly.

He couldn't let this signal reach Zhaojing. Instead, he had the new chieftain cooperate in putting on a show.

Beixiang's dark, dense masses seemed like a massive army pressing at the border. In reality, only the soldiers in the front row or two held weapons, and even those were waved weakly.

A massive in scale but with zero lethal force military advance by Beixiang began.

Fang Zhenbo didn't dare waste a single moment. He immediately sent this news back to Zhaojing.

This was precisely the news of border unrest that Chang Wenji had been hoping for.

Xiao Yan asked, "Any movement on Chang Wenji's end?"

Fang Fengshi frowned. "Nothing for now."

He also thought it was strange. Chang Wenji had been so eager to increase Xiao Yan's medication dosage, so keen for the emperor's health to deteriorate rapidly.

Yet now that he had achieved the situation he wanted—the emperor dead and the country without a leader—he was lying low instead of acting.

What exactly was Chang Wenji waiting for?

Fang Fengshi suggested, "Should we test the waters?"

"No need. If the enemy doesn't move, we don't move. We shouldn't take too much action now, or it'll only make that old fox Chang Wenji suspicious."

"Alright, understood."

"By the way," Xiao Yan looked up from his thoughts, "did that letter get sent?"

The letter he wanted to send to Jiang Wang, telling him the unrest was starting soon and not to worry.

Fang Fengshi sighed and scratched his head, seeming a bit embarrassed.

"It was sent, but it didn't make it. Things are unstable everywhere right now. The courier was ambushed and killed by bandits on the road, and the letter was burned. I immediately sent a second one; it should be on the way now."

Xiao Yan heard this but didn't speak, just nodded.

With the court in turmoil and unrest everywhere, even sending a letter had become so difficult.

He just worried that the news of the "emperor's death" would reach Jiang Wang's ears before the letter did. He wondered what Jiang Wang would think...

Seeing Xiao Yan's brow deeply furrowed, Fang Fengshi remembered the main reason for his visit.

He had received a reply from Jiang Wang to deliver.

Sure enough, the moment Xiao Yan opened the letter, a faint smile appeared on his face.

The large sheet of paper contained only four simple characters: "All is well," without even a signature.

Xiao Yan shook his head with a smile, unsure whether to feel relieved or exasperated.

But he didn't want to ask for too much. He only wanted Jiang Wang to stay safe and avoid injury, and the words "All is well" were enough to put his mind at ease.

It seemed Jiang Wang was doing well over there, likely extremely busy, so busy he didn't even have time for a proper reply.

Well, "All is well" was enough.

Jiang Wang was far from the turbulent center of Zhaojing, relatively safer in Lingnan.

Once he finished handling matters here, he would still have plenty of time to spend with Jiang Wang.

Just as Xiao Yan finished putting the letter away, he heard footsteps in the passageway—a third person besides himself and Fang Fengshi.

Had they been exposed?

Xiao Yan and Fang Fengshi immediately grew alert, blew out the candle, and hid in the shadows, waiting to strike the intruder a fatal blow.

However, the footsteps stopped at the doorway, and a familiar male voice sounded.

Ling Shan's voice carried a hint of urgency: "Your Majesty, it is I, your humble servant."

As Xiao Yan's personal guard, he naturally knew about the emperor's feigned death. But to minimize the chance of others discovering Xiao Yan's hiding place, only Fang Fengshi could directly contact Xiao Yan now.

Others had to relay messages to Fang Fengshi first, who would then pass them on. This is why Fang Fengshi was always complaining.

Now, at this critical moment, he needed to relay messages quickly. Five or six times a day was about right.

For Ling Shan to disregard the rules and come here rashly now, something must have happened.

"Your Majesty, according to our spies, Chang Wenji has mobilized his troops!"

"Do we know why Chang Wenji mobilized his troops?" Xiao Yan asked.

He needed to understand Chang Wenji's reasons for mobilizing in as much detail as possible to judge whether it might be a trap.

"The informant said Chang Wenji received a letter from Lord Jiang. The content roughly said the situation in Lingnan was extremely dire, hoping Chancellor Chang could offer some assistance."

Xiao Yan looked at the letter in his own hand and realized that Chang Wenji had received one at the same time. He instantly understood Jiang Wang's intention.

His own letter, though brief, conveyed the true situation in Lingnan.

Chang Wenji's letter, however, despite being longer, was an elaborate deception crafted by Jiang Wang.

Jiang Wang knew that Chang Wenji's current hope was for the Great Jing Dynasty to descend into as much chaos as possible. So, he fabricated a scene of turmoil to plant in Chang Wenji's mind.

Thus, at this very moment: Beixiang had mobilized troops for war, Lingnan was suffering severe floods, and Zhaojing was in chaos with the emperor's death.

Now was indeed the best time to mobilize troops.

So, Chang Wenji made his move.

In this sense, Jiang Wang's letter truly became the catalyst for Chang Wenji's mobilization.

Xiao Yan took out the tiger tally and looked at Fang Fengshi.

"Commander Fang, the show is about to begin."

Author's Note:

Time to start making arrests! Things are about to reach the conclusion!