Chapter 125: Chapter 121: Good News Arrives in the Capital City_i

Translator: 549690339 |

When the convoy from the North Prince Mansion left Anping City, some people from the Prince’s Mansion were actually a bit tense, as they all worried that the cavalry outside of Anping City were actually the cavalry of the Barbarian Tribe.

However, once they left the city gate, they saw that the cavalry was still stationed in place, keeping guard, and had not done anything to the Prince’s Mansion’s convoy; only then did everyone feel relieved.

At this time, the curtain of a carriage within the convoy was lifted, and Lin Wanyun and Chen Wanrong carefully examined the heavy cavalry dressed in black armor through the carriage window.

Seeing that the commander leading the troops was a Grandmaster, Chen Wanrong’s eyebrows slightly lifted.

Then, Lin Wanyun said, “These people indeed do not look like those from the Barbarian Tribe, but they also do not resemble the heavy cavalry of Great Xia.” Chen Wanrong did not speak; she, of course, also noticed this point.

The Barbarians and the people of Great Xia have some differences that make them easy to distinguish.

The soldiers of this cavalry looked very much like people of Great Xia, but Great Xia apparently did not have heavy cavalry with black standard-issue armor.

The heavy cavalry of Great Xia used silver gleaming armor, not black, so it was very likely that these heavy cavalry were not those of Great Xia either.

This was strange.

A heavy cavalry force of five thousand men, neither belonging to the Barbarian Tribe nor to Great Xia, where did they emerge from?

Could the North Prince manifest an army out of thin air?

Lin Wanyun again put forth a bold conjecture, “Could these cavalry be from another dynasty?”

Since they were not from Great Xia, nor from the Barbarian Tribe, and certainly not from North City, then there was only one other possibility, these cavalry were foreign reinforcements invited by the North Prince from another dynasty!

At this time, Chen Wanrong softly said, “Madam Lin, the Barbarian Tribe is to the north, Great Jue to the west, Great Xia to the south, and the great ocean to the east.”

Chen Wanrong did not directly deny Lin Wanyun’s conjecture, but her words clearly indicated that Lin Wanyun’s guess was also unlikely.

Firstly, besides Great Xia, the only dynasty bordering North City, the Da Yue Dynasty, did not have heavy cavalry; they were so poor they could barely survive, let alone lend heavy cavalry to North City. If this cavalry truly were borrowed by the North Prince from another dynasty, they would necessarily have to pass through either Great Xia or Great Jue.

A heavy cavalry of five thousand men passing through any dynasty would certainly attract attention.

This was fully armored heavy cavalry, not merely a force of five thousand regular soldiers; as soon as heavy cavalry were deployed, the surrounding countries or dynasties would quickly become aware of the movement of heavy cavalry.

The North Prince surely couldn’t have covertly transported this heavy cavalry force to North City across the sea, could he?

Just at this moment, the commander of the Black Cavalry suddenly left the formation and headed straight for the convoy.

Seeing this scene, Lin Wanyun immediately became nervous.

The commander of this cavalry seemed extraordinary, as if he were a ferocious soldier who had stepped out of the underworld, his body laden with a heavy murderous aura, signifying the countless lives he must have taken.

Fortunately, the Grandmaster level commander did not come to their carriage but instead went to the carriage of Queen Mu Zixuan.

General Xuanyuan Chen dismounted and knelt in front of Mu Zixuan’s carriage, saying, “This lowly general, Xuanyuan Chen, pays his respects to the Queen!”

Watching through the carriage window, Mu Zixuan immediately said, “General Xuanyuan, please rise quickly!”

At this moment, those in the carriages in front of and behind Mu Zixuan opened their curtains, poking their heads slightly out of the windows to look towards Mu Zixuan’s side.

After Xuanyuan Chen said “Thank You, Queen,” he stood up from the ground.

Curiously, Mu Zixuan then asked, “General Xuanyuan, I heard that the Prince led the soldiers of North City to slay two hundred thousand Barbarian Tribe soldiers, is this true?”

Xuanyuan Chen immediately replied, “In response to the Queen, this matter is absolutely true.”

“Not only that, we have also captured one hundred thousand soldiers of the Barbarian Tribe.”

Upon hearing Xuanyuan Chen’s reply, Chu Qingli, originally expressionless inside her carriage, couldn’t help but frown.

From Xuanyuan Chen’s attitude towards Mu Zixuan, it was as if Xuanyuan Chen truly was a general under the North Prince’s command?

Even if the Barbarian Tribe intended to deceive the Queen into heading north, now that the convoy of the North Prince Mansion had already left the city, they would have no need to continue the charade.

Moreover, this appeared to be a General of Master Level.

Chu Qingli could sense the killing intent on him and the daunting aura of a Martial Artist.

Did a Grandmaster level Barbarian Tribe general need to act in front of the Queen of the North Prince?

“The warriors of the Barbarian Tribe” typically do not kneel to women, this was common knowledge even the people of Great Xia were aware of.

But just now, Xuanyuan Chen knelt before Mu Zixuan, proving that Xuanyuan Chen was very likely not a general of the Barbarian Tribe.

Chu Qingli’s heart grew cold.

She had been ready to flee with her sister, but then Xuanyuan Chen knelt directly in front of the Queen.

Also surprised were Lin Wanyun and Chen Wanrong.

The moment Xuanyuan Chen knelt before the Queen of the North Prince, it signified that the heavy cavalry belonged to the North Prince Mansion, otherwise, the general would not perform a half-kneel ritual before the Queen.

“In this era,” generally only soldiers who especially acknowledge a female head would perform a half-kneel in front of her.

Speaking plainly, if Xuanyuan Chen had only acknowledged the North Prince, he had no need to offer a half-kneel to Mu Zixuan. Other generals of Great Xia, upon meeting Mu Zixuan, likewise did not need to offer a half-kneel but merely needed to bow and salute.

By performing this ritual, it was to some extent as though he was saying, “Seeing the Queen of the North Prince is as though I am seeing the North Prince.”

At this time, Chen Wanrong murmured to herself, “It seems the entire Great Xia has been deceived by the North Prince.”

Lin Wanyun said worriedly, “Palace Master, we should just leave North City directly. The North Prince is no fool; he must have realized that we are getting close to him with ulterior motives.”

That the North Prince has amassed such a huge force in secret is enough to show his deep scheming. How could such a person not see that the Mysterious Moon Palace’s approach is purposeful?

If the North Prince learns that the Mysterious Moon Palace intends to control him with the Love Worm, he might deal with them harshly.

At this time, Chen Wanrong spoke, “People are easier to control when they have desires. He has amassed such an enormous force, surely for that position in the Capital city.”

“The Mysterious Moon Palace should indeed help him at this time.”

Lin Wanyun instantly understood Chen Wanrong’s meaning—Chen Wanrong intended to use Lu Chen as a puppet and have him fight a life or death battle with the Sum Emperor, allowing the Mysterious Moon Palace to reap the benefits in the end.

Chen Wanrong’s idea was simple: since the North Prince had already accumulated such a tremendous force, they should first control him, and then let him and the Sum Emperor duke it out.

This would not interfere with their use of Lu Chen to refine the Subtle Dragon Spell either.

Originally, Lu Chen was only valuable for refining the Subtle Dragon Spell, but now, in Chen Wanrong’s mind, his value had risen to a new height.

After hearing Chen Wanrong’s words, Lin Wanyun sighed inwardly and said no more.

At that moment, the caravan continued onward.

The Great Xia Dynasty.

Capital city, Xuanzheng Hall.

Today, as usual, the Sum Emperor was again in a thunderous rage in the court.

“You’ve been investigating for so long and still haven’t found a trace of the assassin, what use is the Ministry of Criminal Justice to Me!!!”

Hearing the Sum Emperor’s bellow, officials from the Ministry of Criminal Justice shivered and didn’t dare to breathe a word.

The Sum Emperor had given the Ministry only a few days to investigate the massacre at Prince Lu Shuyun’s residence. Days had passed, and they hadn’t found a bit of news about the assassin. Later, who knows who the brilliant one was who framed an assassin from Blood Moon Tower, alleging that the assassin harbored hatred against Prince Lu Shuyun and thus sought to kill him.

But the Sum Emperor was not so easily duped; he soon received news that the Tower Master of Blood Moon Tower had already died in North City. Although it was unclear how he died, the existence of Blood Moon Tower in the Capital city was now in name only.

Obviously, the Ministry of Criminal Justice had not found the real assassin, so they pinned the blame on Blood Moon Tower.

Afterward, the Sum Emperor disposed of a group of officials from the Ministry and gave the remaining officials some more time to continue the investigation. Yet, there was still no trace to be found.

The Ministry officials were all aware of the conflict between the North Prince and Prince Lu Shuyun, but the North Prince was useless; they couldn’t just push the blame onto him. If they were to shift the blame onto the North Prince, they feared it would only incite further rage from the Sum Emperor.

Just then, Left Minister Lin Gaoyuan said through gritted teeth, “Your Majesty, finding the assassin who attempted to kill Prince Lu Shuyun is certainly important, but the current situation in the North Land is of the utmost importance.”

Lin Gaoyuan cared more about the situation in the North Land than anyone else in the court, as his own son was the one leading the troops to battle.

Upon hearing Lin Gaoyuan’s reminder, the Sum Emperor calmed his emotions and then said to the officials from the Ministry of Criminal Justice, “I will give you three more days. If you still can’t find anything, you’ll have to consider the consequences.”

At this point, the Sum Emperor was ready to sit down when suddenly, a soldier’s voice came from outside Xuanzheng Hall.

“Victory in the North Land!!!”

Upon hearing this, the ministers within Xuanzheng Hall were all stunned.

A great victory?

How could there be a great victory at this time?

The Capital’s seventy thousand soldiers, along with the handful of old, weak, and sick from North City—merely holding North City would have been an impressive feat.

How could there possibly be a great victory?

It was obvious that the frontline generals were fabricating the good news to falsely report military achievements.

Thinking that the person leading the troops to the north was the son of Left Minister Lin Gaoyuan, those associated with Right Minister Zhao Wenhan swallowed hard and moistened their throats, immediately preparing to impeach Lin Xiuming for falsifying military reports.

However, when the Red Ribbon Messenger entered the hall, one statement from the messenger silenced the entire court, plunging it into a deathly quiet. After entering Xuanzheng Hall, the Red Ribbon Messenger immediately knelt down, holding up the battle report with both hands and shouting with all his might, “Your Majesty, the North Prince led the soldiers of North City in a valiant battle, slaying two hundred thousand Barbarian Tribe soldiers and capturing another one hundred thousand!”

Upon hearing this, it was like a bomb had dropped; the entire court erupted with commotion.

All the ministers were dumbstruck.

They had seen falsified battle reports, but they had never seen one so blatantly fabricated!

Slaying two hundred thousand of the Barbarian Tribe?

What a joke!

The mere forces from North City were already doing well just to withstand the Barbarian Tribe’s invasion.

And now to claim they had slain two hundred thousand Barbarian Tribe soldiers?

It would be more believable if two hundred thousand civilians had been slaughtered by the Barbarian Tribe!

Who on earth wrote this battle report?

This was not a battle report; this was akin to involving one’s ten clans in the matter!