荔枝影院

Edited by: Michyrr

In the end, Zhu Tong’en overcame his hesitation to speak up.

“But, we know that Old Eagle has a disciple called Zhang Que. With Old Eagle heavily injured, his disciple has already taken full control, and everything seems to be operating normally. Moreover, they’ve recently been removing many of our spies. Senior’s plan... seems to not be very effective.”

The Eastern Palace became eerily still. Even First Prince Li Ying couldn’t help but turn to the Ghost King. Although the First Prince remained silent, it was clear that he had the same thoughts.

“A disciple is just a disciple. If a disciple could so easily surpass their master, then they should have just switched places. Are you sure that Zhang Que can really replace him?”

The Ghost King chuckled.

“Reporting!”

At that moment, one of the First Prince’s personal guards rushed inside.

“Your Highness, the scout outside the King of Foreign Lands Residence reports that the King of Foreign Lands has begun to move. Many of our scouts and infiltrators have been eliminated. Of our forty-some infiltrators, only three are left!” the personal guard reported, getting down on one knee as soon as he entered the hall.

Everyone instantly grimaced at these words. This was not the first time the King of Foreign Lands had taken action against the Eastern Palace’s men. They would occasionally allow the various parties to freely scout the area, even allowing them to jump over the wall of the King of Foreign Lands Residence. But in the space of a single breath and without any warning, they would unleash a thunderous strike that would wipe out all these spies.

But this was not what was important. What was important was that in past operations, when the King of Foreign Lands took action, all the spies would be wiped out. This time, however, three spies had survived.

One had to realize that for the purpose of intelligence gathering, as long as all spies were not eliminated, one was no different from one hundred. As long as a lookout was present, one could receive a constant stream of information.

The Ghost King’s judgment had been correct. That disciple, Zhang Que, truly could not replace Old Eagle.

A strange expression appeared on everyone’s faces.

The First Prince smiled as he stepped forward. “Senior, this prince believes. No one should have any more doubts about your judgment. What should we do next?”

“This old man has readied everything!”

The Ghost King’s eyes flashed as if he had been waiting for these words from the First Prince.

He suddenly rose from his armchair, and his body erupted with an immense pressure. Everyone watched as the Ghost King strode over to the model in the center of the hall.

This was a model of the entire capital. Not only did it cover the entire Imperial Palace, but the residences of the nobles and common folk as well. Even Wang Chong’s King of Foreign Lands Residence was included.

The model was simply enormous, a scaled-down version of the capital that was exquisitely detailed.

The laws of the Great Tang decreed that it was forbidden for anyone to make a duplicate of the capital’s layout, and those who defied this law faced heavy punishment. This was not without reason, as no one who decided to make a model of the capital ever had good intentions. If the news of this model got out, the First Prince would be impeached by the entire court.

Buzz!

The Ghost King reached his right hand out of its sleeve and flicked a finger. Immediately, four small flags flew through the air and landed on four separate residences in the model.

“As long as Your Highness follows my plan and does these four things, everything will flow as smoothly as water through a canal. Your Highness will be able to fulfill your desires and sit upon the throne to become the overlord of the realm!”

The First Prince couldn’t help but be moved by these words.

“Senior, what are these four things you refer to?”

“Your Highness will understand when the time comes!”

The Ghost King gave an unfathomable smile.

......

Zhang Que’s investigation quickly produced results. Wang Chong’s judgment had been correct. There was a reason those Tibetans had been able to find Old Eagle’s location so quickly.

According to Zhang Que’s investigation, the spy team member who had been delivering information to Old Eagle had abruptly disappeared in the aftermath.

Not only that, when the carrier pigeon that Old Eagle had received right before the incident had been inspected, claw marks of a bird of prey had been found on its body, indicating that it had been captured. It was now apparent that the carrier pigeon Old Eagle used to send information had been watched, and someone had used a gyrfalcon or a similar type of bird to capture it.

This was why the carrier pigeon had been five minutes late, and the enemy had used the carrier pigeon to find Old Eagle’s location.

While all this seemed simple, it was easier said than done. The birds used by Old Eagle, even the carrier pigeons, had all undergone rigorous training that included aerial combat and escaping capture.

Old Eagle had long ago developed a unique training system that even involved feeding his birds a special kind of food that was mixed with herbs that would strengthen the bones and muscles of his birds. This would allow them to fly long distances and escape any sudden ambushes.

Old Eagle’s birds were not something that an ordinary bird of prey had the strength to catch.

And it wasn’t like all the birds would personally go to Old Eagle. It was only for certain special incidents that Old Eagle would receive them personally. Rigorous analysis and screening were needed to find the right bird, and it wasn’t something that those Tibetans could have done.

While Wang Chong had some lingering doubts before, he was growing more and more certain as he obtained more and more intelligence that pointed to that man in the inner palace.

After looking through the report, Wang Chong handed it to Zhang Que and coldly ordered, “That man in the Imperial Palace has too high of a status to do such a thing. Investigate anyone who has bought birds in the capital recently, particularly birds of prey like gyrfalcons. There can’t be many people like this. Find the man behind all this!”

Zhang Que affirmed and left.

Half a day later, Zhang Que found the news Wang Chong desired.

“Around half a month ago, a Goguryeon merchant who could train gyrfalcons appeared in the capital. He began to sell various birds of prey, and a few days after that, the Imperial Army appeared at his store, but the man had already vanished. According to the information we gathered, that Goguryeon merchant was called Kim U-Seok!”

“It’s him!”

Wang Chong’s brow creased upon hearing the news.

He had heard the name ‘Kim U-Seok’ before. There had been a Goguryeon on the execution list after the Imperial Palace incident concluded.

For there to be a Goguryeon in the middle of this incident was far too bizarre, and it had drawn much curiosity at the time. Wang Chong only knew that this man’s name was Kim U-Seok. Wang Chong had never expected him to appear here.

As the investigation continued, even more information was revealed. That Goguryeon merchant called Kim U-Seok was extremely famous in the Goguryeo Empire, known as the supreme Eagle King of Goguryeo. The gyrfalcons he raised were extraordinarily vicious, and according to the information from the spies in Goguryeo, Kim U-Seok was an extremely ambitious man. He had been an extremely prosperous merchant in Goguryeo and had even sold his gyrfalcons to the imperial household.

But later on, those talks with the Goguryeo imperial household apparently fell through, seemingly because he felt that the price offered was too low. Based on what Kim U-Seok had said before, he seemed to think that the Goguryeo Empire was too poor. As the Central Plains was far wealthier, he turned his attention to the capital of the Great Tang.

He was now on the wanted list of Goguryeo.

So it was him. Old Eagle had no idea who he was facing, so it was no wonder he was caught!

Wang Chong pensively raised his head.

Wang Chong was sure that the matter of Kim U-Seok was no simple affair. It was obvious that the First Prince was beginning to recruit men. Kim U-Seok was a Goguryeon, but the First Prince didn’t care. It was clear that the incident from his memories was getting closer and closer.

The Rebellion of the Three Princes!

As the memories of that incident reemerged, a hint of sorrow appeared in Wang Chong’s eyes.

Kim U-Seok had already entered the Eastern Palace, and he probably wouldn’t show his face again for some time, at least not after that attack. But Wang Chong was in no rush. No matter where Kim U-Seok was, his fate was sealed. When the time came, Wang Chong would make him pay the price, and that day was not too far off in the future.

His first priority was still to treat Old Eagle’s injuries.

“Pass on my order! Distribute posters with Kim U-Seok’s face. If he is discovered, kill on sight!” Wang Chong sternly said.

This news traveled all over the capital and was even sent to the distant Goguryeo.

Time slowly passed. The attack on Old Eagle had made all of Wang Chong’s subordinates wary. Moreover, following Wang Chong’s order, a password system had been implemented in the intelligence network. Even if the carrier pigeons were captured or the communication method used by Wang Chong’s spies were revealed through torture, the spies could use a secretive method to inform the others that they were in trouble.

Old Eagle’s injuries were stabilized and slowly began to improve, marking a temporary end to the incident. No one knew Wang Chong’s plan, but after the incident, a map of the capital had appeared in the King of Foreign Lands Residence.

While no one knew what Wang Chong was doing, he spent many hours each day pondering the map, occasionally drawing incomprehensible signs upon it.

After the incident, the First Prince seemed to settle down, and the capital calmed down.

Ten days later...

After administering his usual treatment to Old Eagle, Wang Chong had returned to the main hall to ponder the map.

Whoosh!

There was a sudden flapping of wings. Wang Chong looked up and saw a mottled bird at the window. Wang Chong glanced at it and immediately raised an eyebrow. This bird was not one of those fierce birds of prey, nor was it the usual carrier pigeon. Rather, it was a beautiful lark.

Many people in the capital raised birds, but none of them used larks to deliver messages.

It’s her!

Wang Chong gently smiled. This lark was extremely familiar to him. It was the one he had gifted to the young lady of the Bai Clan, Bai Siling.