Chapter 14: Lu Ting’s Words (1/2)

The cold wind assaulted Wang Yan as he walked out of King Song Residence. Just like the wind, his heart wasn’t calm at all.

Wang Chong’s words had caused a great storm in his mind.

Wang Yan had to admit that he had wronged his third son, Wang Chong, on this matter. ‘Dynasties changed faster than a person’s nature’, Wang Yan had always thought that his unfilial son had never changed and that he was still causing trouble for him all around.

Yet, if not for Wang Chong’s reminder, Wang Yan would not have known that King Song was already dissatisfied with his contact with Yao Guang Yi.

Wang Yan was a typical military man, but this didn’t mean that he didn’t know anything at all. As a subordinate, the greatest taboo one could commit was to misspeak before his superior.

If the several generations of goodwill between the Song and Wang Clan were to be destroyed from a single wrong phrase that he said, he would have truly sinned.

Even so, Wang Yan still found it hard to believe what Wang Chong said.

“How is that possible? Yao Guang Yi was scheming against me?”

Wang Yan lifted his head to stare at the sky and sighed. Wang Chong had claimed that Yao Guang Yi wanted to harm him, but Wang Yan still found it hard to believe his words.

All he and Yao Guang Yi did was to have a casual meeting and drink together. They didn’t even speak of anything during the gathering, so how could Yao Guang Yi have harmed him?

Could meeting one another and drinking wine be his way of harming him?

——Wasn’t this way too easy and ridiculous then?

Wang Yan shook his head, perplexed over the situation. Just as he was contemplating over the matter, didada, the sound of the trotting of a horse echoed from the streets.

Wang Yan looked up and saw a majestic black steed rushing toward him.

“Is this General Wang Yan?”

On the back of the steed, a general with a flag behind him bellowed from afar.

“Indeed! What’s wrong?”

Wang Yan narrowed his eyes and an austere look appeared on his face.

“The Bureau of Military Personnel had decreed for general to immediately return back to your campground!”

The black mustached general had an indifferent face. His wrist jerked and a red token flew toward Wang Yan. Then, without saying another word, he turned his steed around and galloped into the distance. The sound of the trotting of the horse soon faded away.

Wang Yan caught the red token and upon seeing the word ‘Flame’ on it, his face immediately darkened.

Military orders are not to be disobeyed. The word ‘Flame’ on the deployment token by the Bureau of Military Personnel meant that it was extremely urgent, and from the instant he received the token, he had to hurry back to the camp he was deployed at without stopping at all.

“The third matter!”

Wang Yan looked at the token in his hands as a storm broke out in his head.

He had just met King Song and before even stepping out of the entrance of the King Song Residence, the deployment order from the Bureau of Military Personnel really came. The timing was exactly as Wang Chong had put it.

This was really inconceivable!

Wang Yan had no idea how Wang Chong knew of it.

The doubt in Wang Yan’s heart intensified. Yao Guang Yi and Wang Chong… There were too much mysteries contained within the affairs of the two.

“Right now, there is only one last thing…”

Wang Yan thought as he recalled the matter Wang Chong had said about ‘retreating 50 li‘. The Hu hadn’t invaded the part of the border where he was deployed at for many years now.

Wang Yan was unable to comprehend why his third son Wang Chong was so insistent on having him retreat 50 li upon meeting with the invasion of the Hu.

No matter, it felt completely inconceivable. If it was in the past, Wang Yan would not have taken it seriously. But right now, Wang Yan had no choice but to take his words seriously and contemplate over the matter.

“No matter what, everything will be revealed when I reach the borders!”

Keeping the token in his embrace, Wang Yan walked down the steps of King Song Residence’s entrance. Instead of returning back to the Wang Clan Residence, he headed straight for the military camp.

…

“Zheng Yuan has switched allegiance!”

Almost at the same moment as Wang Yan’s departure, in King Song Residence, King Song’s face darkened from intense anger. King Song wasn’t entirely truthful with Wang Yan. Actually, the King Song Residence had not obtained the letter written by Wang Yan.

However, the letter was definitely sent to the King Song Residence.

“Yet another person who decided to side with King Qi!”

The old butler’s complexion wasn’t too well either. After Wang Yan’s letter reached King Song Residence, one of the aides under King Song, named Zheng Yuan, took it away. There were simply too many people who had betrayed King Song for King Qi during this period of time.

Without a doubt, Zheng Yuan was also one of them.

“Those darned men! I had treated them well, yet they repaid me with such ingratitude!”

King Song clenched his fists tightly and indescribable wrath warped his face. He was by no means a skeptical person, but King Qi had to been going around to persuade those around him to his side.

Upon seeing that the odds were in King Qi’s favor, those around him chose to switch allegiance. Under such circumstances, King Song had no choice but to doubt the loyalty of his subordinates and aides.

“It was a pity that I had falsely doubted Wang Yan over this matter despite his loyalty toward me.”

King Song felt guilty.

“Your Highness, there is no need for you to blame yourself. Yao Guang Yi is a confidant of King Qi and Wang Yan’s action of meeting him secretly in the Vast Crane Pavilion at such a moment was indeed suspicious, it was normal for Your Highness to cast doubt on his loyalty. However, it is still too early to tell whether the Wang Clan is truly innocent or not. The children of the Wang and Yao Clan might have had a conflict in the pavilion, but it is too early to tell whether they were simply going to the extremities to hide their alliance! ——Surely Your Highness haven’t forgotten about the affair with Zhou Chang back then?”

The old butler spoke impassively.

Weng!

Hearing these words, King Song’s face darkened. The matter with Zhou Chang happened in the era of the previous emperor. Due to this matter, many of the officials in the royal court had been demoted. In fact, even King Song’s father was implicated and he was imprisoned in the Imperial Prison for three months straight, almost staying there for life.

The heritage of King Song was almost stripped of the nobility due to that incident!

Thus, King Song had an extremely deep impression of that matter!

“You’re saying that…”

King Song’s face twitched. A frown returned to his face and he fell into contemplation.

“Your humble servant isn’t hinting at anything. Your Highness is a magnanimous person, and if the Wang Clan is truly loyal, that would be for the best. However, Your Highness should still remain guarded against them. After all, a human’s heart is unfathomable. If the Wang Clan was truly framed for this matter, Your Highness could simply make amendments to them then. However, it wasn’t wise to come to a hasty conclusion at this moment.”

The old butler continued impassively.

King Song was magnanimous, but as the butler of the King Song Residence, he had served several generations of King Song. He had seen too many schemes and ploys in the royal court.

Friends do not last forever, only profits do. As the butler of the King Song Residence, he was only loyal to King Song’s profits.

“Hehe, isn’t it an easy task to uncover the truth?”

After a moment of silence, King Song suddenly chuckled.

“Your Highness is speaking of Academic Lu?”

The old butler seemed to have guessed what he was thinking about.

“Un, didn’t Academic Lu head to the Vast Crane Pavilion along with Bao Xuan? The truth would be clear after we ask him about it.”