Chapter 156: It Hurts Me Too
In the Wu Residence!
Wu Lie returned back with a sore back and trembling knees
The night before had been the most comfortable night of his life.
All this time, he had been strict with himself. His family"s style… was very disciplined towards oneself.
But after yesterday, he realized… there was no need.
Why bother?
Was life not good? Wasn"t it good to have such a life now and then?
Wu Lie pushed open the door and entered the residence. He found Wu Kunhu confronting Wu Muyu.
"Tell me why you drew a pig on my armor!"
"Because I think it looks good!"
"Then why did you write next to the pig whoever wears it is a pig?"
"Because I don"t want Daddy to go to the battlefield. Every time Daddy goes to the battlefield, I"m always worried!"
Wu Kunhu was immediately rendered speechless.
Although he knew that Wu Muyu was lying, he could not get angry.
He happened to see Wu Lie and asked casually, "Where did you go last night?"
In reality, if Wu Lie gave a reasonable excuse, Wu Kunhu would just let it slide.
However, he never expected that Su Wen"s words would suddenly resound in Wu Lie"s mind.
What"s the purpose of having a father? It"s to anger them!
And using Wu Muyu just now as an example…
While he was thinking, Wu Kunhu impatiently asked, "I"m asking you a question! Where did you go?"
Wu Lie grinned and encouraged himself. "I"m not afraid of him!"
He said firmly, "I went to a brothel. Why?"
The moment the first sentence was spoken, Wu Kunhu"s forehead was already bulging with veins.
When he heard the provocative next sentence, his face turned red from anger!
"Why? I"ll let you know why!"
Pa!
Wu Lie flew… upwards…
The scene that happened next was extremely cruel… inappropriate for minors to watch…
He even vented all the anger he had suffered from Wu Muyu.
Finally, Wu Kunhu left…
Wu Lie"s face was covered in blood as he lay on the ground. It was unknown if he was dead or alive…
Wu Muyu walked over and found a straw stick. She squatted in front of Wu Lie and carefully tucked her skirt in to prevent it from getting stained with blood. Then she poked at Wu Lie"s face with the straw stick.
"Brother, has the letter arrived?"
"I… sent… it." Wu Lie"s breath seemed to be leaving him.
"What did Brother Su say?"
"A father exists… to be… angered…"
Wu Lie fainted.
"You"re so annoying! Who asked you that?! Do you think I"m unaware of that?!"
Wu Muyu stood up, stomped her feet before running away.
She knew very well that Wu Kunhu would not really let Wu Lie suffer serious injuries.
Although he looked miserable, his organs were not injured at all.
It would be fine after he got some rest.
In the Prime Minister"s manor, Su Changqing poured a cup of the Wind-Ripping Hou bone wine. This wine was indeed extraordinary. After drinking it, the aftertaste lingered for a long time. When the wine entered his throat, he closed his eyes and concentrated.
It was only after a while did he open his mouth and ask, "A Heaven Rank expert has entered the capital?"
"That"s right, His Majesty has invited experts from the Martial Pavilion to come out and monitor." A man stood in front of Su Changqing and reported in a deep voice.
"What"s his background?"
"Yao Gu"s birth brother, here to save Yao Gu and his son."
Huiming didn"t hide his tracks, so it wasn"t hard to find out.
Su Changqing didn"t say anything and fell into deep thought.
After a long moment, he said softly, "Yao Gu must die! A Heaven Rank can naturally come to the capital and try to take two lives, but if Yao Gu dares to attack my son, he can"t be allowed to live. Otherwise, wouldn"t everyone dare to attack my son in the future?"
"If we kill them all, His Majesty won"t look good. Huiming won"t be able to handle it either. Let"s keep Yao Gu"s son alive."
"Since Yao Gu"s son doesn"t need to die, then the others don"t need to die either. The rest will be sent to the army, and his mother will be imprisoned in a solitary cell. Take good care of her, and publicly declare that she has died along with Yao Gu. If her son doesn"t behave himself in the future, use her as a countermeasure."
The man hesitated. "If that"s the case, His Majesty…"
Su Changqing smiled and said, "Don"t worry, it"s just Yao Gu. Just report it directly to His Majesty and say that I killed him. His Majesty won"t be angry."
"Yes!"
No one would"ve thought that Su Changqing would issue a direct order to kill someone a Heaven Ranked expert came to the capital to protect!
Yao Gu died in the end.
As someone whose cultivation was crippled, he died silently.
Emperor Zhou looked at the report in his hand. It clearly showed that Su Changqing had sent people to poison Yao Gu.
He looked at the report for a long time before sighing and saying, "Retreat, I understand."
After the people from the Ministry of Justice left, Emperor Zhou shook his head and said, "This Changqing is still overprotective of his own people. However, this is also his personality. Yao Gu attacked Su Wen and injured his family"s guards, so Changqing will definitely not let him be freed. I have neglected this point."
The old eunuch frowned. "What about Huiming?"
Emperor Zhou raised his eyebrows and smiled. "What should we do? What about it? He will have to endure this. Don"t we still have Yao Gu"s son? Does he not wish to save him?"
At this point, he shook his head. "This Su Wen is truly like Changqing, but he"s still too inexperienced. He should"ve killed Yao Gu and his son the moment he captured them, but instead he"s made a mess of things. That being said, it"s a good thing he did so, otherwise if this Heaven Rank expert launched a surprise attack, it would"ve been troublesome. How much longer until the formation from the Spiritual Masters Residence is completed?"
The old eunuch said in a low voice, "It"s already in the midst of being set up, but the capital is huge, so it will take at least a month."
Emperor Zhou nodded and said with satisfaction, "Although these spiritual masters are eccentric, they are still powerful. I want to see if there are any Heaven Rank masters in the capital that I don"t know when the array is completed!"
"Your Majesty… Huiming seeks an audience!" Just as he finished speaking, another report came from outside.
"Come in!"
As Huiming entered, Emperor Zhou held his forehead and asked, "What did that brat say again?"
He didn"t need to ask to know that Huiming must have been kicked back like a ball.
Huiming said truthfully, "I followed what Your Majesty said and went to look for Su Wen. However, he actually accused me as a swindler that wanted to cheat his family. He said that I needed Your Majesty"s token before he could believe me and asked me to look for Your Majesty and ask for a token to prove my veracity."
Emperor Zhou shook his head helplessly and sighed. "Master, think about it carefully. Did you do something wrong?"
"Huh?" Huiming was puzzled. "What"s wrong with the way I did it?"
Emperor Zhou saw that he did not even know how to do this, so he decided to point him out. "You said that you asked me to do something and you still know that you have to lend me your strength once in exchange. But how could it be that you don"t know what to do when you meet with Su Wen?
He has a grudge with Yao Gu, so do you think he will agree to letting the person go so easily? You have to give him some benefits! Say, if Yao Gu"s son goes out, he might even blame Su Wen for Yao Gu"s death, and beg you for revenge. Would Su Wen dare to let him go out?"
Huiming"s eyes widened!
"I understand now!"
However, he immediately reacted. He looked at Emperor Zhou and asked in a low voice, "Yao Gu is dead?"
"He"s dead! He committed suicide by ingesting poison! Before he died, he even personally killed a few prisoners in the same prison cell, including his wife!" Emperor Zhou"s face revealed a trace of heartache. "It"s all my fault! I forgot to send someone to tell Master Yao Gu that you have come to rescue him.
That Yao Gu thought that he would definitely die, so he didn"t want to be beheaded and humiliated. He begged the guards to buy poison for him! But Master, don"t worry! That guard has already been killed by me! Such a person that did not know how to comply with the rules had to die!"
Hui Ming clenched his fists tightly.
Yao Gu died in the end.
He even died only after he had arrived at the capital.
That was his younger brother by blood!
After a moment, he relaxed his fist.
"Amitabha… May Benefactor Yao Gu ascend to paradise early…"
Emperor Zhou nodded and consoled, "Don"t worry, Yao Gu must have already gone to Paradise. It might not be a bad thing."
Huiming brought Zhizhen out of the palace.
Zhizhen knew that he must be heartbroken. "Master, is your brother"s death really by suicide?"
Huiming only shook his head in response, "Perhaps, perhaps not."
"Then what should we do?"
"The dead are dead, no point harping over it. The living are the most important!"
Evidently, it was just as Emperor Zhou and Su Changqing had predicted.
Huiming could only choose to endure it.
The young monk didn"t understand. "Master, haven"t you always taught me that Martial Way leads to G.o.dhood, and that Heaven Rank cultivators are revered? Why can"t you save your brother despite being at the Heaven Rank?"
"Because I"m not strong enough!"
"Then where are we going now?"
"Find Su Wen!"
At Su Wen"s house, he also received the news of Yao Gu"s death.
Su Wen frowned. "Yao Gu is dead? F*ck, who did this? Isn"t this creating trouble? That old monk won"t blame me, right?"
Su Wen"s first reaction was that there was definitely something fishy about this matter. Yao Gu could have died earlier or later, but he just had to choose to die now?
"The emperor killed him?" Su Wen immediately suspected Emperor Zhou.
In Su Wen"s opinion, if he chose to kill Yao Gu now, Emperor Zhou would definitely pursue the matter. Otherwise, he would have done it long ago.
He began to ponder. For what reason would the emperor want to kill Yao Gu?
Give this Huiming a warning? Show him what the Emperor could be capable of?
Domineering! As expected of His Majesty!
The more he thought about it, the more Su Wen felt that the emperor did it.
The problem was… Could the old monk be mistaken about it? Just as he thought of this, he saw Ning Shuang walk in.
"Young Master, there are two monks outside asking to see you!"
Ning Shuang came to report.
"Quick! Quickly go and get my Uncle Si! No… it"s too late!"
Su Wen pulled a long face and said, "Hurry up and get me a bottle of wine!"
Huiming and Zhizhen waited at the door. After a while, Ningshuang came out and said with a conflicted expression, "Go in. My young master is waiting for the two of you!"
The two of them entered and saw some white cloth hanging on Su Wen"s residence.
Su Wen sat in the courtyard with wine in his hand. His face was red and his eyes were red and swollen.
He wailed at the top of his lungs, "Wuwuwu, Uncle Yao, Uncle Yao! Why did you leave just like that? When I heard you left, I felt as if a knife was being twisted in my heart. It was so painful! So painful!"
"Uncle Yao! Although you wanted to kill me, I"ve never hated you! I know that you"re only taking revenge for your brother. The word "righteous" comes first! The reason why I captured you is only because of my duty! How my heart aches for you upon hearing of your death!"
"Uncle Yao! When I saw you make a move that night, you were so elegant and graceful. I really admire you in my heart! I wish I could be your disciple. Why did you leave just like that!"
"Uncle Yao, Uncle Yao, I was already planning to look for His Majesty to plead for you. Why didn"t you wait?"
Su Wen wailed as tears streamed down his face.
The apprentice monk Zhizhen felt his heart ache.
"Master, I feel that Benefactor Su Wen is a chivalrous person. Your brother probably deserved to die…"
"You don"t have to sleep tonight. Recite the scriptures till dawn!"
Infected by the sad atmosphere, Huiming felt a little down as well as he walked to Su Wen"s side. He softly consoled, "Benefactor, don"t be sad. My younger brother has already reached Paradise."
Su Wen raised his head and looked at Huiming blankly. "Really? Master?"
"Probably… really!"
Su Wen nodded. "Then I"m relieved…"
He got up and poured the wine on the ground, saying, "I heard that Uncle Yao likes wine. Now, his whole family is in jail, and no one is paying their respects to him. Although Uncle Yao and I have fought before, we don"t have any personal grudges. I can understand Uncle Yao taking revenge for his brother. Even if he killed me, I don"t hate him… It"s just a pity… A good man is gone just like that…"
In the corner of the courtyard, Chu He and Zhao Jin, the latter who was wrapped in white cloth like a mummy after his experiment, stole a glance at the scene.
Chu He couldn"t help but say, "I dare say that even if Yao Gu comes back to life and sees our Young Master like this, he won"t be able to kill him."
Zhao Jin chimed in, "That"s right… those who don"t know would probably think the young master was sired by Yao Gu himself… his crying is probably much more moving than even Yao Gu"s own son"s."
Chu He smiled and said, "I only wonder if the Young Master will be like this if the Prime Minister is gone…"
Pa!
Zhao Jin couldn"t move his upper body, so he sent a kick over.
"D*mn it, it"s only been a few days since you"ve not got beaten, and you already dare to say anything. How can you even say something like that? If the Prime Minister hears this, he will kill you without even blinking."
Chu He didn"t resist and wisely chose to keep silent.
At this moment in the courtyard, Su Wen heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that Huiming had no intention of attacking.
He stood up and said, "Master, please come in!"
Huiming questioned in surprise, "Didn"t you think I was a scammer from the martial world the other day?"
The last time he came, Su Wen even called him a liar.
Su Wen shook his head and said, "Master, I was wrong. I"ll tell you the truth. I said that you"re a liar because I was afraid that His Majesty would blame me. Think about it, why didn"t His Majesty directly order Uncle Yao to be pardoned? It must be because he himself doesn"t want to pardon him in his heart!
That"s why even though I know that you"re Uncle Yao"s biological brother, I don"t dare to follow you into the palace. I can only push your excuses back to His Majesty. For the Emperor of Great Zhou, pardoning someone is something that can be decided with a few words. Why would he need to ask for the opinion of a mere commander of the Secret Shadow Guard? Think about it. I"m not afraid to say something disrespectful… Uncle Yao"s death… is probably not that simple."
Huiming"s pupils constricted at his words!.
The moment Su Wen said this, he felt as if the fog that obscured his senses had been lifted, and he could finally see the sunlight.
That"s right, the Emperor was the Son of Heaven after all. Why did he have to ask for the opinion of a mere commander of the Secret Shadow Guard?
How would he know that Emperor Zhou was only doing this to save his pride?
However, Yao Gu"s sudden death made Su Wen"s words even more convincing.
Su Wen was an astute person. One look at Huiming"s expression and he knew that Huiming had been successfully hooked.
Delighted, he murmured to himself, "Your Majesty, please don"t blame me. You"re strong and fit, and you"re surrounded by many experts. Even if a Heaven Rank expert were to target you, it wouldn"t be a problem. But I can"t… so I"ll just pin the blame on you? Besides, I"m not spouting nonsense. You"re most likely the one who did this."
In the dark, an old man with white hair and beard shook his head. Looking at the entire set-up, he grinned, "This kid is quite interesting!"
Huiming pondered for a moment before he said, "Then are you willing to come with me to see His Majesty now? Yao Gu"s son, Yao Yong, is of my secular bloodline. I don"t want this bloodline to be severed!"
Su Wen put on a troubled expression.
"Master, didn"t I just say… I"m not the key…"
"If you go, I promise you that Yao Yong will not take revenge on you. And I can help you once without endangering my own life!"
Hmm? Su Wen"s eyes lit up! Emperor Zhou didn"t need Huiming to make a move, but Su Wen did!
This was a m*therf**king Heaven Rank expert!
Moreover, Su Wen would be guaranteed that Yao Yong would not seek revenge on him…
Although this guarantee was questionable, with Yao Yong"s cultivation… Hehe, Su Wen really didn"t care.
"Master! Yao Yong is of Uncle Yao"s bloodline. It"s only right that we rescue him. I"m willing to follow you into the palace and seek an audience with His Majesty!"
In the imperial palace, Su Wen saw Emperor Zhou. He looked at him with a bitter look.
However, he still followed decorum to bow before saying, "Your Majesty, I have heard that Yao Gu is dead. Since the main perpetrator is dead, the rest of his family members are innocent. I feel that perhaps we can spare them!"
Emperor Zhou looked at Huiming and then at Su Wen. He smiled and said, "Su Wen, this is what you asked for!"
Emperor Zhou was implying that him releasing them was not because he was afraid, but because Su Wen wanted it.
"Yes… this is a request for Your Majesty to show mercy." Su Wen couldn"t understand Emperor Zhou"s strange ego.
Instead, he was curious about why he would say this sentence.
He thought to himself, "Why are the Emperor"s words so weird today? What does it matter if I ask for it or not?"
Emperor Zhou nodded in satisfaction and said, "In that case, Yao Yong shall be pardoned."
Huiming cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Emperor Zhou wrote a decree and had the eunuch lead Huiming to announce the decree.
Meanwhile, he got Su Wen to stay behind.
"Brat, you really know how to s.h.i.+rk responsibility! I asked Huiming to look for you, but you pushed him back twice. What"s the meaning of this?" Emperor Zhou didn"t hide anything and directly questioned Su Wen after Huiming left.
Su Wen smiled and said, "I thought that Your Majesty didn"t want to release Yao Gu. If not, Your Majesty could have just issued a decree. Why would you need me to enter the palace to ask for them to be pardoned? Moreover… if Yao Gu didn"t die, I wouldn"t be satisfied either!"
The last sentence was spoken from Su Wen"s heart.
Emperor Zhou sneered and said, "At least you"re pretty honest!"
"How is it? How much did you get from that old monk?" Emperor Zhou asked.
Su Wen"s expression turned solemn. "Your Majesty, I"m not that kind of person."
"Tell me the truth!"
"He can act once for me."
Emperor Zhou gaped. "That"s it?"
Su Wen"s eyes widened. "Isn"t that enough? That"s a Heaven Rank expert!"
"Look at how useless you are! You have no ambitions at all! Get lost!"
Emperor Zhou chased Su Wen out.
On the other side, Yao Gu"s son Yao Yong was also brought out.
This was his first time seeing Huiming.
"Who are you?"
"Your father… is my younger brother," Huiming said. "I came to the capital to rescue you all."
Yao Yong hurriedly said, "Thank you, Uncle!" He looked around and asked, "What about my father?"
"Dead! Your mother is dead too!"
"What?"
Yao Yong felt his world crash down on him.
He let out a heart wrenching cry.
"Su Wen! I want to kill your entire family!"
"Pa!" Hui Ming slapped him and said, "Why would you want to kill his entire family?"
Yao Yong raised his head and said, "He was the one who imprisoned our entire family! He was the one who killed my father!"
Huiming coldly rebuked, "Your father broke the law, thus him capturing your entire family is his duty. Why should you hate him?"
"My parents must have been killed by him!" Yao Yong gritted his teeth.
"Do you really think that Su Wen would dare to kill your father? With the Emperor taking note of this incident, and with Heaven Rank experts in the capital, do you think a mere Su Wen can kill your father? Furthermore, do you think he can kill your father and not fear punishment from the Emperor as well as my revenge?! There"s only one person that fits the bill to be able to do such a thing!"
Yao Yong understood. He gritted his teeth and said, "No matter who it is, I must take revenge! Kill his entire family!"
"Achoo!" In the palace, Emperor Zhou rubbed his nose.