Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
The sounds of killing and death rang through the air like raindrops halfway to the earth. They were so far away yet so close that it could envelop him in the blink of an eye.
“Listen.” Lotus put a finger up to her mouth and pretended to listen. “The kings who have been watching have finally made their move. They are crying out so loudly because they think the Khan can still hear them.”
Lotus knew that the Dragon King would not easily reveal the whereabouts of Han Wuxian, so she simply did not mention it.
“The Norland won’t devolve into chaos that easily,” said Gu Shenwei casually as if the two were still like before when they had a mutual and tacit understanding for each other and were working out a plan together.
They were not friends, lovers, partners, or even enemies.
“As soon as the new Khan appears, the chaos will soon be over. This is the tradition. Many people of the Norland say these things as if it is their own choice. In fact, it’s just an excuse to cover up their unrestrained greed and ambition. No one can stop them so they have to add a seemingly good reason to their actions.” Lotus was smiling a lot tonight. Although the indifference on her face didn’t diminish by much, it did make their conversation less tense. She was trying to do everything she could to keep their relationship from turning hostile.
Lotus’s dispassionate analysis surprised Gu Shenwei, who had rarely heard Lotus make such a judgment about the world’s situation.
“It’s actually easy to keep the chaos going.” Lotus continued to explain her view. “Just never let a new Khan rise.” She glanced at the head on the bed as she continued, “Kill all the rising ones. The winner of tonight’s melee will be assassinated first thing tomorrow morning.”
“The assassination will expose Waning Moon Hall sooner or later.”
“So the assassin can’t be one of mine.”
“Hmm, then it can only be Old Man Mu.”
“Old Man Mu is a wise man. He knows who he should be loyal to.”
“Don’t trust him too much. He’s only loyal to himself.”
“I’ll be careful.”
The two gradually became courteous to each other again. Behind Lotus, Han Fen smiled cheerfully and mouthed something at him. Gu Shenwei was completely bewildered and gave no response.
“When all the kings are dead, the situation in the Norland will become less tense, and then sooner or later one of the Khan’s descendants will be recognized as the new Khan.”
Lotus raised her hand and Han Fen took out a rectangular wooden casket from behind her and presented it to the Master Commander with both of her hands. She was a bit disappointed because the Dragon King wasn’t able to read her lips.
“These are the edicts of the Khan. There are two of them: one for Duodun and the other for Luoluo. The contents are the same except for the name. The Khan’s original plan was to let you assist Duodun and Golden Roc Castle Luoluo. And the winner will take all. But I will change the plan a bit. Duodun in the Western Regions will get the edict first and lead his army to the prairie. When he’s about to complete pacifying the chaos, Luoluo, who’s at the southeast frontier, will receive his edict. Naturally, he will rebel and declare that Duodun’s edict is fake. That’s my plan for now. Do you have a better idea?”
“Your plan is already perfect. If you want the chaos to continue after Luoluo plays his part, you have to find a way to use the three tribes from the Consorts’ side, especially the Naihang Tribe. King Rizhu will die but his ambition won’t. Set some puppets aside for the ambitious schemers on the prairie.”
“Good idea. We’ll kill all the grown men of the royal family and only leave the children under fifteen years old alive. They’ll run to their uncles, and in a few years’ time they will return as new contenders.”
“And the Central Plains. The Emperor will take advantage of this chaos and send his troops. Be careful, do not become the cat’s paw.”
“I’ve already sent someone to the Central Plains but I don’t know if the little emperor also likes women as much as the Khan did. I know nothing about the Central Plains.”
Gu Shenwei thought for a moment and said, “I also don’t know much, but if I remember correctly, the Central Plains will not be easily controlled as the Norland. On the surface, the Emperor wields supreme power, but the real power is actually shared among many counselors. Even if the Emperor is obsessed with women, he can’t interfere the army.”
“That’s a bit of a problem, I’ll have to consult with you again.” Lotus’s voice showed a rare tenderness, which she seldom showed in front of the Dragon King.
Behind her, Han Fen smiled even more merrily, not sensing the hidden killing intent in the friendly atmosphere.
“Let the Norland people surrender.”
“What kind of idea is that?” Lotus was slightly surprised but wasn’t angry; she knew that the Dragon King must have a reason behind his suggestion.
“I remembered a court dispute in my childhood. For three days, my father talked about the same thing when he came home. Back then, a Norland tribe had surrendered, but the situation in which they had done so gave the imperial court a headache regarding how to deal with them. These people knew nothing about farming, as they always moved from place to place in search of water and grass. By keeping them, they would become a nuisance to the local people; if they banished them, the imperial court was worried that the other countries would be bitterly discouraged and no one would ever surrender again.”
“What happened in the end?”
“They decided to accept the tribe and provide them with money and food on a monthly basis, disallow them to graze, and slowly teach them how to farm.”
“That’s not a good idea. Teaching the Norland people to farm is as difficult as teaching a soldier embroidery. And it’s going to cost a lot, isn’t it?”
“The cost was tremendous. My father said that fortunately there weren’t many surrenders. Otherwise, the treasury might have been emptied out to let the wolf in.”
“Bringing a wolf into the house,” repeated Lotus, the faint smile on her face vanishing. “Waning Moon Hall needs someone like you.”
“Well, you know my temper. It’s hard for me to accept a sudden demotion from ally to vassal.
Lotus fell silent. Han Fen, who had been bottling up what she wanted to say for a long time, finally got the hint and said cheerfully, “You won’t be a vassal, Dragon King. Master Commander is willing to let you be the Hall Leader. She’s actually…”
“Again, I am a man, too.”
“As I said, I didn’t mean to kill all the men. You’ll come in handy, and you’ll be very useful.”
Gu Shenwei carefully thought about her proposal for a while before shaking his head. “Sorry. For me, the Waning Moon Hall is too mysterious and strange. I’m afraid that I will end up with nothing.”
“No, as long as you…” Han Fen’s words came to an abrupt end once again, which made her feel even more uncomfortable.
After being refused, Lotus didn’t become discouraged but neither did she continue persuading him. “This is the Dragon King’s decision. Maybe you’ll find that the Waning Moon Hall is not that mysterious and strange after a while. Let’s look at the edicts of the Khan first. After all, you’ve come for them specifically.”
The lock of the casket was sealed with clay. Lotus easily crushed it, opened the lid and looked at the inside for a moment before taking a roll of paper out. She spread it and took a quick glance before handing it to the Dragon King.
Gu Shenwei went over and took the posthumous edict. They were now only separated by three steps, the distance so close that he could instantly launch a quick blow.
The edict was written in the twisted characters of the Norland, which Gu Shenwei didn’t know a word of.
Han Fen asked the four slave girls in the bed. “Which of you know these strange characters?”
The slave girls shook their heads. They were born in noble families, but in the Norland even the kings themselves couldn’t read, not to mention the daughters of the ordinary nobles.
What Gu Shenwei cared about was not the characters. The wooden casket was right in front of him, and he could see that it was empty.
There was only one posthumous edict, not two.
“The Khan held back a trick.” Gu Shenwei put the edict back into the box.
“It doesn’t matter. I guess it’s for Duodun, so I’ll just change the plan and let Luoluo sweep the royal children of the Norland first before having Duodun rise in rebellion.” Lotus looked at the Dragon King with sincere and brooding eyes, not at all like a young woman. “Then the Waning Moon Hall will need you even more. Only you can help Duodun survive and grow to the point of being able to compete with Luoluo one day.”
Gu Shenwei slowly stepped back. He was afraid that he would be tempted to draw his sword and stab the woman in front of him.
He shook his head again, saying, “You know me.”
A clear sound of hands clapping came from outside the tent.
Lotus smiled and said, “I’ll give you a gift anyway.”
Three masked women came in from outside the tent, each carrying a man bigger than themselves.
These three men’s heads were all covered with black cloth and their hands were tied behind their back, and they were dropped heavily onto the floor after being brought in. They twisted around a few times but none of them were able to stand up. Obviously, they had been drugged.
The masked women nodded to show respect to Lotus before they left the tent right away.
Han Fen couldn’t control her excitement and she immediately lifted the black head cover of the first man after receiving the hint of the Master Commander.
Gu Shenwei recognized him as one of seven Eagle Claws around the Khan who seemed to be called Green Falcon and was a top-notch kung fu master of the Norland. But now his mouth was full of cloth strips and he knelt on the floor, powerless to resist.
He was still unconvinced because he had not been defeated by saber or sword but rather by a sneak attack. He stared at the Dragon King with fierce eyes and then turned to Lotus and Han Fen.
Soon he saw the scene on the bed.
With his eyes wide open, he let out a muffled growl and actually staggered to his feet but only managed to hold on for a moment before he fell to the ground again.
“His name is Green Falcon and was bribed over by King Kuari. He committed the heinous crime of killing the Khan and was discovered by the guards. Then he went mad and died under a random saber in the chaos.”
Lotus announced the role of the first captive not at all like a gift to the Dragon King.
Upon hearing this, the Green Falcon wanted to rise again but was poked by Han Fen and fell again. This was her favorite game.
“Even if there’s a murderer, they’ll be buried with the Khan.” Gu Shenwei cast a glance back at the five slave girls on the bed and ground.
“The plan has nothing to do with them. I just don’t want people to suspect the Waning Moon Hall.”
Han Fen couldn’t wait to remove the hood of the second captive.
This man was young and handsome and looked strong, but Gu Shenwei did not recognize him.
“This is Feng Qin,” Han Fen introduced.
Gu Shenwei was stunned for a moment before remembering that Feng Qin was Shangguan Shaomin’s ‘lover’ who had killed King Dari’s favorite minion and had been arrested while trying to kill King Kuari.
Feng Qin did not seem to have been tortured.
“Shangguan Shaomin is in my hands. Would you like to trade your life for her?”
Han Fen pulled out the cloth in Feng Qin’s mouth to let him answer the Master Commander’s question.
Feng Qin didn’t know what was going on and also didn’t know what the question meant. Panic-stricken, his eyes roamed about the tent, “I, I …”
“His not knowing how to answer is beneficial for him because his love for Shangguan Shaomin is fake.” Lotus seemed a little disappointed.
“No, I really… like her.” Feng Qin said in an urgent voice.
“It’s just a little bit and not enough to die for her. You came to the Royal Court under the orders of the Golden Roc Castle, and the Unique King assured you that you would be safe.” Lotus had no doubts, she was simply making a statement.
Feng Qin hesitantly nodded.
Han Fen immediately stuffed the rag back into his mouth and threw him out of the tent.
“He can’t die here,” said Lotus flatly.
Han Fen then ran back and lifted the hood of the third captive.
Shangguan Nu had avoided the palace guards but wasn’t able to escape from disciples of the Waning Moon Hall.
“This is my gift to you. He came to assassinate the Khan on behalf of King Rizhu but died at the hands of the Green Falcon. You may draw your saber.”
Behind Lotus, Han Fen beamed with joy and kept winking at the Dragon King.
Gu Shenwei still didn’t understand.
