Ming Dynasty Detective 1546

Chapter 262 "Yuan Tianzi" Makes His Move

Dark as ink.

The third watch clapper had just sounded.

The lanterns in the side courtyard of the Imperial Guard swayed in the night breeze, casting dappled shadows.

The house was filled with the sounds of snoring; perhaps they were tired from patrolling all day, and everyone was sleeping soundly.

In the shadow of the eaves, a cloaked figure quietly appeared. After listening for a moment, the figure pointed at the window, its cold eyes darting around before locking onto the sleeping figure on the inner side.

"go with!"

Having pinpointed the target's location, the cloaked figure blew a light whistle, and a golden viper slithered out from his sleeve, its scales gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

At Wang Zuo's request, Li Yuanshe could not carry out the assassination directly, as that would be like protesting too much and would only confirm the other party's testimony.

Poisoning is also prohibited, for the same reason: it would be difficult to cover up the cause of death and could easily cause panic.

After many twists and turns.

The "Yuan Tianzi" decreed that the "Zhen Shui Yin" among the Twenty-Eight Mansions, skilled in controlling venomous snakes, could eliminate future troubles.

Wang Zuo then agreed.

In autumn, there are many mosquitoes, insects, ants, and rodents in Huguang, and even the Prince of Xing's mansion is no exception. Previously, a member of the Imperial Guard was bitten by a snake while on patrol, but the snake was not venomous and he only had it bandaged.

Now, a venomous snake can enter a house at night, bite its target to death, and even injure several people, enough to deceive everyone.

Ever since.

The venomous snake slithered into the side room through the crack in the door, leaving a trail of slimy residue on the floor tiles.

However exquisite the snake-controlling technique may be, a beast is still a beast; it cannot be controlled as if it were its own arm. Having swum to the approximate area of ​​its target, it impatiently raised its head and flicked its tongue, its eerie snake eyes fixed on its first target—

"Whoosh!"

At this critical moment, a beam of silver light fell from the beam and struck the snake precisely at its seven-inch mark.

“His ...

Accompanied by a shrill scream and the writhing of a dying body, Master Tao Dian, descending from mid-air, swept open the window frame and charged toward the cloaked figure outside.

The cloaked figure twisted its body strangely, slipping through the gaps in the sword light like a fish, its short blade aimed straight for the throat.

"Clang, clang, clang—!"

The sharp clash of swords against short blades sparked a series of fireflies. The cloaked figure used the momentum to flip backward, only to see the other five Taoists leap out and form a battle formation, blocking their retreat.

"Who sent you?"

Tao Dianzhen said coldly, "What a clever trick! They actually released snakes. Are they trying to make Hu Sandao's death look like an accidental snake bite?"

The cloaked figure remained silent, a bone flute slid out from his sleeve, and he assumed a fighting stance, holding a weapon in each hand.

"Stubborn!"

Tao Dianzhen's sword moved like a dragon and a snake, and with one move, a white rainbow pierced the sun, aiming straight for the heart.

The two exchanged more than ten moves in the blink of an eye, seemingly without a clear winner. However, Tao Dianzhen was holding back in order to capture Wang Zuo alive and have him identify his crimes, and his strength was clearly superior to his opponent's.

Seeing that their opponent was being forced to defend himself and was severely exhausted, the five Taoist priests who had surrounded him were eager to try and capture him alive in one fell swoop. Unexpectedly, the cloaked man suddenly threw out a handful of poison powder with his left hand, and his right hand swung the bone flute upwards at an incredible angle.

"careful!"

Tao Dianzhen's long sleeves billowed, causing the fallen leaves beneath his feet to swirl and form a barrier, while the tip of his sword touched the bone flute.

He poured his true strength into this strike, thinking he could make the opponent drop his weapon, but to his surprise, the place where he landed was empty. The bone flute was knocked away, and at the same time, the cloaked man's right fingernails gleamed with a cold blue light as he grabbed at Tao Dianzhen's heart.

"boom!"

Tao Dianzhen's moves were outdated, so he could only change his body shape and dodge the poisonous claws with the slightest difference of time. He abandoned his sword and used his palm to deliver a heavy blow to the cloaked man's shoulder.

The sound of bones shattering was clearly audible. The man spat out a mouthful of blood mist, which was mixed with several fine, hair-like poison needles.

The insidious tactics were endless, and Tao Dianzhen almost fell into one of them. She dodged the attack with a start, her body flying backward.

Once the poisoned needle had landed, only a pool of black blood remained in the courtyard. The man had already escaped the encirclement and disappeared without a trace.

'I initially thought they were a group of hidden talents under Wang Zuo, but judging from their methods, they seem more like traitors and demons!'

Tao Dianzhen was not surprised but delighted, and shouted, "Chase!"

As the party catching the thief, Chaotian Palace had no need to hide anything; they wanted to make a big fuss and let everyone know.

Before long, the surrounding courtyards were alerted, and people gathered around after hearing the news. They marveled at the sight of the venomous snake nailed to the ground.

"San Dao, what have you done? You actually lured someone to release poisonous snakes to bite you!"

"I don't know either... I didn't say anything wrong..."

"What exactly do you know? Tell me!"

"In my opinion, the traitors who started the fire haven't given up yet. Tonight they plotted against the Imperial Guards, and tomorrow they dared to spy on the Emperor's carriage. I don't even want to think about what they'll do the day after tomorrow!"

"hiss!"

……

"What's all the noise about!"

Just as everyone was curiously discussing the matter, a sharp shout rang out like thunder. Wang Zuo strode over, and the crowd receded like a receding tide wherever he went.

Seeing the cold light gleaming from the man's python robe in the torchlight, Yan Shifan, who had also rushed over upon hearing the news, felt a chill and quickly retreated, shielding everyone in front of him.

Tao Dianzhen's Adam's apple bobbed, and he couldn't help feeling nervous.

But he knew that once the arrow was released, there was no turning back; if he wanted to rise to power, he would inevitably offend this powerful Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) leader.

Taking a deep breath, the Taoist priest from Chaotian Palace chose to meet him head-on: "Commander Wang, your arrival is just in time! There have been thieves attempting assassination in the dead of night, plotting something sinister. I urge the Embroidered Uniform Guard to investigate thoroughly!"

Wang Zuo ignored him completely, glancing around: "Aren't you going to sleep? If anything goes wrong with the imperial guards tomorrow, watch your heads!"

The crowd fell silent, bowed in unison, and scattered like birds and beasts.

Wang Zuo then turned to Tao Dianzhen and suddenly struck, slapping him hard across the face.

The moment the other party raised his hand, Tao Dianzhen felt a chill run down his spine. This commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard was also a skilled fighter, and he felt a strong threat.

But at the critical moment, after judging the opponent's strength, Tao Dianzhen deliberately did not dodge and was knocked to the ground with a thud.

"Don't try to trap me!"

Wang Zuo bent down slightly, uttered a sentence in an icy tone, and turned to leave.

"Senior Brother Tao!" "Senior Brother! He's gone too far!"

The Taoist priests stepped forward and helped him up, saying angrily.

Tao Dianzhen coughed up a mouthful of blood, but his expression remained calm: "It's nothing!"

The greater the grievance he suffers now, the deeper the impression he will leave on His Majesty's heart. This is why he is willing to suffer humiliation even though he could have avoided it: "This person is now desperate and has become just like the Marquis of Wuding in the past. Let's see how long he can be so arrogant!"

"Commander, you shouldn't have slapped that Taoist priest in public..."

On the other side, when Wang Zuo returned to his room, the men from Liyuan Society came out and whispered their advice.

Wang Zuo suddenly turned around and looked over.

Just as the men of Liyuan Society thought this man was about to question why the operation had failed and were ready with an excuse, Wang Zuo's expression changed, and he slowly said, "I underestimated these Taoist priests. The Taoists of Chaotian Palace are not simple; there may be someone capable behind them!"

The man from Liyuan Society was surprised by the other person's serious expression: "Who?"

Wang Zuo hesitated for a moment, then decisively said, "No matter who it is, you should retreat!"

The man from Li Yuanshe's face changed: "What does the Commander-in-Chief mean?"

"Withdraw! Run! Get as far away as possible! Don't you understand?"

Wang Zuo said irritably, "Your Liyuan Society is already shady enough to hide in the shadows. Do I need to tell you how to lay low now?"

His speaking style was clearly different from that of his disciple Lu Bing and his subordinates in the Embroidered Uniform Guard, revealing a street-smart irritability and impatience.

Previously, the men of Liyuan Society thought this was a sign of the other party's helpless submission and were secretly pleased with themselves. But now, hearing those impolite words, their eyes suddenly flashed with a chilling light: "Commander, you are mistaken! The opportunity for the southern tour has been missed and will not come again. We will not give up until we achieve our goal!"

"Fool!"

Wang Zuo sneered, his fingers tapping lightly on the hilt of his sword hidden in his sleeve: "Can an 'opportunity' that everyone in the world can see still be called an opportunity? You all know that the guards on the southern tour are not as tight as those in the capital, but don't His Majesty and the entire court think of that?"

A night wind suddenly rose, making Wang Zuo's python robe flutter loudly. His gaze was like a knife piercing the other party: "Perhaps this is a trap to lure you in. Once your leader, that so-called 'Prince Yuan' who boasts of being omnipotent but can't even kill a single Imperial Guard, is captured... Ha!"

With that, he lightly traced a line across his neck with his finger: "You ants will be reduced to ashes in an instant!"

"The Commander-in-Chief is underestimating the Liyuan Society!"

The man from Li Yuanshe cracked his knuckles as he clenched his fists: "Those corrupt officials in the court who hold their positions without doing any work, they think they can capture 'Emperor Yuan'? That's just wishful thinking!"

Anyone can talk big!

Wang Zuo waved his hand: "Once you're in this situation, there's always the risk of making a mistake, not to mention... there's Hai Yue involved!"

"Ha! So the dignified Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard is actually afraid of a mere child, a mere scholar in his early twenties!"

The man from Liyuan Society wasn't surprised; he had thought of the same person earlier. However, he didn't take it seriously: "Haiyue did indeed capture some of our people, but that was because there was a traitor within the society. Those people were betrayed and unfortunately captured..."

"okay!"

Wang Zuo interrupted him this time: "I have been in charge of the Embroidered Uniform Guard for twelve years and have never made a mistake. If I tell you to get out, then get out. You will thank me in the future. I will find a way to deal with that Imperial Guard named Hu Sandao!"

The men of Liyuan Society were truly angry this time.

So insulting!
The key point is that this domineering attitude comes from someone who has already been controlled and manipulated by them!

What he hated most in his life was this kind of condescending look-down!
And occupying the highest position is none other than the supreme ruler on the dragon throne!

Therefore, this opportunity to get close to the emperor must not be missed!

Seeing Wang Zuo's condescending attitude, the man from Liyuan Society said no more, but calmly said, "Commander, please wait a moment!"

"What are you waiting for?"

Almost as soon as he finished speaking, footsteps sounded outside, followed by a report from a member of the Imperial Guard: "That Imperial Guard has been killed!"

"Who?"

"Hu Sandao!"

Just as Wang Zuo was stunned upon confirming his identity, the man from Liyuan Society emerged from the darkness, brimming with confidence and fervor: "The abyss is a thousand fathoms deep; if the emperor loses his virtue, he will be walking on thin ice! This is the promise of 'Emperor Yuan,' which he will never break!"

(End of this chapter)