Rising Phoenix

When the Tian Sheng Emperor heard her say “causing disorder in the Royal Court,” his eyes flashed, hesitation appeared in his heart, and a thought flew through his mind — when did Shao Ning learn to speak these kinds of words?

Just as he was about to ask, a cry of surprise came from the guard disposing of the corpse.

Everyone turned and saw the guard slowly peel something off of the assassin’s face, holding it gingerly by two fingers. It was a finely crafted human skin mask.

Shao Ning’s stone had smashed into the assassin’s skull, and a large amount of blood had soaked into the assassin’s face, and the mask had wrinkled. The attentive guard had realized something was off, and when he tried to peel back to mask with a nail, had discovered the second face underneath.

The Second Prince quickly ran over to examine the man, and he immediately cried out: “This is a familiar face!”

The Seventh Prince kept silent, and the Fifth Prince folded his arms as he calmly spoke: “Isn’t this the martial arts master that Old Six had invited to the Eastern Palace a couple days ago. I think I saw him there once.”

The Crown Prince froze.

He also knew this man.

A month ago, he had been chatting with Old Six and had spoken about how rogues were always underfoot in the Eastern Palace, and many of his brothers were watching him with greedy eyes, making him uneasy. Old Six had replied that he could find a reliable Kung Fu master to protect the Eastern Palace, and had found this man, apparently the greatest expert of the Hu Zuhuo Snow Mountain’s Exotic Sword Sect. The Crown Prince met with this expert once and was immediately impressed, and was going to immediately invite him to join the Eastern Palace, but he had been stopped by Old Six. Ning Yi had found the man’s countenance suspicious, and wondered if he had some ulterior motives — for safety, they had decided it best to give him a position somewhere else and to test his loyalty. Afterwards, the Crown Prince had completely forgotten about this man, and now it turns out that Ning Yi was correct in his suspicions!

The truth was probably that when Old Six had presented this man to the Crown Prince, he had been seen by his spying brothers, and this was the only reason that they thought this assassin was Ning Yi’s man.

The Crown Prince lowered his eyes and nervously thought to himself. This matter, should he speak or keep silent?

But the Crown Prince almost immediately made his decision — he under a great deal of suspicion, and if he told the truth, he would only be piling trouble upon himself, and why would he do that?

As for Old Six … the Crown Prince was the ruler, and his brother the minister — a minister dying for his lord is the natural order of the heavens, and is a blessed act!

With his decision made, the Crown Prince no longer hesitated and immediately spoke out: “I have also seen this man before, he is Sixth Brother’s Mansion Guard!”

With this one sentence, everyone’s expression changed — Ning Yi had always been in the Crown Prince’s camp, and had served with utmost loyalty. The other Princes had thought that there would at least be some form of defense, after all, that would be how a ruler kept the dedication of his follower’s heart. No one had expected the Crown Prince to be so ruthless, immediately sacrificing the pawn to preserve the king!

Behind the screen, Feng Zhiwei’s heart instantly became as brilliant and clear as snow. She turned her head and met Ning Yi’s gaze.

In response to this gaze deep beyond meaning, Ning Yi only calmly looked back, the hints of a cold and courageous smile on his face.

But from that small smile Feng Zhiwei could read a deeply hidden sorrow and bitterness.

On the other side of the screen, all the Princes had reached a silent agreement — if they could not take down the Crown Prince, it would still be worthwhile to cut away Ning Yi. Plucking the wings from the Crown Prince’s camp was something everyone gladly moved for, and now that the Crown Prince himself had already thrown in the stone, the other princes would not be polite.

And since Ning Yi had just saved the Emperor and earned merit, if the others did not seize the opportunity to trample on him, no one could guarantee that he would not be favored by the old man one day, and rapidly rise in power.

“Before the Crown Prince, the Qing Ming Academy was governed by Sixth Brother, and he is surely familiar with the roads here as well.” The icy Fifth Prince said first.

“No wonder the assassin spoke about great nobility and strong powers, with countless servants and intimate knowledge of the roads inside and outside…” The Second Prince crossed his legs, lying with clear eyes. “Now that you mention it, Sixth Brother really does seem likely.”

“We should not rush to conclusions.” The Virtuous Seventh Prince said sincerely. “We must allow Sixth Brother a chance to justify himself, and have Father Emperor be the judge.”

As Feng Zhiwei listened from behind the screen, a cold smiled spread across her lips.

This prince was the most vicious, before a conviction already using the phrase “justify”— these seemingly neutral words already assuming Ning Yi’s guilt.

What a good and virtuous prince!

The Tian Sheng Emperor’s Face was half hidden by the edge of the screen partition, and he kept lidded eyes and a closed mouth, seemingly unaffected by his son’s quarrels, but from Feng Zhiwei’s corner, she could see his eyebrows trembling, and a gloomy and sharp darkness pooling in his half closed eyes.

At that moment, a voice called out clearly: “Qing Ming’s security was lax, and gave Your Majesty a fright. Ziyan comes now to ask for punishment.”

Beyond the white yarn curtain, waving in the wind, Xin Ziyan kneeled, bowing at the bottom of the stairs.

Second Prince immediately smiled, “Headmaster Xin came right on time, but as for the guilt in this matter, this Prince thinks that you should not be so eager to take the blame.”

Xin Ziyan straightened from his kowtow, knees still pressed against on the cold stone, his voice clear and resounding as he stared up at the Second Prince’s thick eyebrows and thin eyes. “Then who does Your Highness have in mind?”

The Fifth Prince coldly replied: “You have just heard, stop pretending that you do not understand.”

“This Minor Minister really does not understand!” Xin Ziyan shot back. “Knowing Qing Ming well and having a good relationship with this Minor Minister is all the proof necessary for guilt? Then when Your Highness Second Prince used the pretext of your brother-in-law’s admittance to Qing Ming Academy forcibly gifted five hundred fine horses, was that guilt? When Your Highness Fifth Prince invited this Minor Minister to a feast at the Jin Shui Residence, and during the feast generously gifted me 20 kilograms of Ming Hai’s tribute, was that guilt? And when Your Highness Seventh Prince often “encounters” this Minor Minister at the Mountain Moon Book Residence, and with the name bosom friend, successively gifted me 32 volumes of rare texts, was that guilt!”

The three consecutive demands fell like steel plates and clattered to the ground, plunging the entire hall into silence. The named prince’s faces swelled and reddened or darkened or paled, none of their expressions normal.

Feng Zhiwei stared in amazement at Xin Ziyan — she really could not measure the true depths of this uncle, apparently he had more talents that just climbing brothel walls and getting run around town by his wife and her troupe, and actually did possess the character and brilliance of a high scholar.

It was at this time that Ning Yi stood, and quietly walked into the hall.

He walked until he was before the Tian Sheng Emperor’s feet and knelt, silent, without having glanced a single time at any of the other princes.

Speaking could not compare to holding one’s peace, and ten thousand words could not compare to a single silence. It is sometimes only in silence that one can experience the deepest grief and the greatest indignation. Feng Zhiwei watched in silent praise — when it came to influencing the heart and keeping action and speech within the limits of propriety, Ning Yi had the clearest understanding.

She watched quietly, a deep sadness crossing her heart — so this was a stage planned and completely under his control? This quarrel between brothers, and this vicious pack that had turned on him was real — the truth of their hearts was clear and in the open.

The Tian Sheng Emperor looked at Ning Yi, his eyes deep and immeasurable. After a moment, he opened his mouth. “What do you have to say?”

All the princes watched, excitement on their faces.

Ning Yi stiffened, and in that moment glanced upwards in disbelief before turning towards the Crown Prince. He refused to meet his gaze.