Chapter 66 "Raising an Army to Go to Heyang"

The layout of the Wuchao Palace is square, with each palace area divided by red walls that are three zhang high, clearly distinguishing the different areas.
Not far from the Imperial Study is the residence and workplace of the Chief Eunuch, Han Fei, who is in charge of seals. However, as the Chief Eunuch, he usually follows the Emperor and is ready to fulfill any commands at any time, so this residence has become more of a decoration.
Nowadays, besides going to the Queen's Palace every day to seek an audience with the Emperor, Han Fei spends most of his time in the Bureau of Ceremonial Affairs.
Being originally a notorious bandit, his temperament has become even more gloomy and his temper increasingly fiery, causing the other eunuchs in the Bureau to tremble in fear, afraid of accidentally offending this ruthless leader of the eunuchs.
Han Fei half reclines on the soft couch in the palace, playing with the hair by his temple with one hand, and his eyes slightly narrowed, as if meditating with his eyes closed.
Once again, he went to the empress's chamber to seek an audience with the emperor, and unsurprisingly, he was turned away again.
According to common sense, the emperor has been poisoned for over two months. If what the Zhai Hua Tower said is correct, the emperor's body is likely covered in maggots by now. However, Han Fei is cautious by nature and he won't take any further action until he personally sees the emperor's corpse.
The Empress's sleeping chamber has now become a forbidden place within the entire palace. After the incident involving Wu Hongde, no one has been able to enter or leave Yu Kun Palace. Everyday necessities are also delivered to the gates of the sleeping chamber by designated individuals, and then inspected by palace maids before being brought inside.
It can be said that the entire Yukun Palace is now completely isolated from the outside world, and no one can obtain even a hint of information from inside.
The more this is the case, the more uneasy Han Fei feels. Several times, he wanted to rely on his cultivation as a third-grade practitioner and secretly enter Yukun Palace under the cover of darkness to find out the truth. However, when he arrived at the outer gate of Yukun Palace full of confidence for the first time, silently climbing up the palace wall under the protection of the night, a terrifying pressure suddenly emanated from within Yukun Palace, directly targeting him. In an instant, he felt as if he had fallen into an icy cave, his hairs standing on end, and his whole body immobilized like a gecko painted on the wall.
"Second... second-rank! How could there be a second-rank grandmaster in the palace?"
In an instant, Han Fei was shocked, no longer caring about hiding his whereabouts. He activated his energy and unleashed his heavenly-gang realm, forcibly breaking free from the oppressive pressure that was tightly locked onto him. With a burst of strength from his limbs, he quickly retreated more than ten zhang, then leaped several times, disappearing into the palace buildings under the cover of the night. Translation:
Until he reached the bottom of the most remote palace wall within the palace, Han Fei finally stopped and hid in the shadows of the corner. He glanced back towards the direction of the Yukun Palace with lingering fear in his heart.
Escape from danger, he can finally focus on thinking about who this second-grade master hidden in the Yukun Palace is!
A third-grade warrior is not a common commodity on the market. The higher the level of the warrior system, the more difficult it becomes. In the vast Wu Dynasty with millions of people, there are at least a million warriors. Among them, there are no more than twenty who can reach the third-grade level, and the second-grade appearing saint level can be counted on one hand!
However, what place is this? It's the inner palace of the imperial palace! If someone were to say that there are no unknown masters guarding the palace, Han Fei himself wouldn't believe it. He thought that Zheng Santu, who always accompanied the emperor, was already the deepest hidden second-tier grandmaster. But now it seems that there may be other hidden masters in the palace that he doesn't know about. This reveals a glimpse of the martial arts heritage of the past two hundred years of the Martial Dynasty.
No matter who this second-tier expert is, Han Fei has given up the idea of sneaking into the Jade Palace at night. Although the other party only released their aura to intimidate him, he has no doubt that if he dare to approach the Jade Palace again, he will definitely face a thunderous strike from the second-tier expert. It's unlikely that he will have the same good luck as today next time.
Although the mysterious master did not trouble him, the thought that in the eyes of the other person he might be no different from an ant made Han Fei, who was always proud and arrogant, feel annoyed. However, he could only accept this humbling possibility reluctantly and carefully return to the Rites Department.
In the Jade Kun Palace, Empress Consort sits on the edge of the bed, her eyes filled with worry as she looks at Wu Hongde lying on the bed.
Despite being poisoned for two months, Wu Hongde's complexion remains unchanged, completely different from that of a comatose patient. His pulse, breathing, and heartbeat are all steady and strong, showing no sign of his prolonged unconscious state.
The Queen's face was worried as she spoke softly, "Mr. Zheng, do you think there will be a day when His Majesty wakes up?"
Outside the pearl curtain, Zheng Jiuen's voice came, "Your Majesty, you are overestimating this humble servant. His Majesty's pulse is stable, his breathing is normal, and his complexion is no different from an ordinary person. In my opinion, what is lacking is just the trigger to wake him up. According to my knowledge, His Majesty was poisoned with the latest drug developed by the Zhaihua Tower, so there must be an antidote in the Zhaihua Tower! The Supervisory Office is diligently searching for the whereabouts of the Zhaihua Tower headquarters, and once we find any clues, I will make sure to bring back the antidote for His Majesty as soon as possible!"
Empress Queen let out a long sigh and remained silent.
Zheng Jiuen looked towards the direction of the Court of Rites, hesitating whether to kill Han Fei first or not. However, after careful consideration, in order to prevent alerting the enemy, he decided to hold off for now. Please let me know if there's anything else I can assist you with!
In the Right Mansion, Lin Bonan sat in the study, bowing his head and savoring tea. Lin Yiruleally stood in front of the desk, informing Lin Bonan about the news of Zhen Meng's family hiding in Heyang County. At the same time, he also revealed his plan to bribe the Flower Pavilion and assassinate Zhen Meng. Translation: Lin Bonan was sitting in the study of the Right Mansion, carefully sipping tea. Lin Yiruleally stood in front of the desk and shared the news about Zhen Meng's family hiding in Heyang County with Lin Bonan. He also disclosed his intentions of bribing the Flower Pavilion to carry out an assassination attempt on Zhen Meng.
It's not that he has much respect for his own father, but after careful consideration, he still plans to use his father's influence to get rid of that person, Jin Meng, who makes him feel uncomfortable every time he thinks of him.
"Father, it is well-known that the Zhen family plotted to assassinate His Majesty. They are currently hiding in Heyang County. It is only logical for the Heyang County government to capture these criminals who intended to commit treason. What are your thoughts on this?" I understand the situation and believe it is appropriate for the authorities in Heyang County to apprehend those who plotted against the emperor.
Lin Yi watched his father, who he could never quite figure out, with some unease.
Lin Bonan lifted his tea cup, gently blowing away the rising steam, and cautiously took a sip, letting out a satisfied sigh.
He put down his teacup and glanced coldly at his disappointing second son.
@"The Zhen family's plot to poison the Emperor is a heinous crime punishable by death. A mere county yamen is not enough for such a charge. Besides, the magistrate of Heyang County is from the same lineage as Zhen Debang. Do you think he would willingly arrest someone who has shown him favor?"
"It's just a collaboration, not a life-saving favor. That small magistrate wouldn't dare to defy the imperial decree, right?"
"Hmph, it's like grasping at straws! If you were to become an official in the court, you wouldn't even realize how you'd be manipulated! Do you think that being an official in the court means you can suppress others just by being one rank higher? How many intricate relationships and conflicts of interest are there in the officialdom? Not to mention whether the magistrate of Heyang will act against his words, even if he is willing to cooperate, how many people can he mobilize in his small county office? The Zhaihua Tower failed twice, do you really think it's just an empty show?"
Lin Bonan glared at Lin Yi with disgust but for some reason still explained.
"Father, are you saying that the Zhen family has skilled protection in secret?"
Lin Bonan neither confirmed nor denied it, took another sip from his teacup, and spat out a small piece of tea leaves that happened to land on Lin Yi's pristine boots.
Lin Yi looked down, but dared not bend over to wipe it.
"Remember, when you strike at a snake, aim for its vulnerable spot. Even when you kill a chicken, you must use a butcher's knife. If you are going to take action, you must unleash a thunderous blow, not leaving the slightest chance for the opponent to turn the tables! The Zhen family must be eradicated completely, leaving no one alive. However, we cannot expect the same for the small county of Heyang. I will have the Ministry of War send troops to wipe out the Zhen family in one fell swoop!" Please reply with the translated content.
林毅闻言，心中大喜，只是林伯南接下来的一句话，让他遍体生寒。
“你是我林伯南的儿子，尽管与你大哥相比，你一无是处，可你毕竟是我林家人，代表着林家的脸面，我再给你最后一次机会，给你弄一个领军校尉之职，你亲自带兵去办，若是办砸了，你就滚出林家，自生自灭去吧！”
Several days later, a army of a thousand people left their base and headed for Heyang County.
Among them were 300 cavalry and 700 infantry.
Leading the troops was Lin Yi, who had just been appointed as a fifth-rank regimental commander.
Only seeing him riding on a jet-black tall horse, wearing a brand-new armor, full of spirit.
Just thinking about soon being able to personally lead the troops to slaughter the entire family of Zhen Meng, he has been excited and unable to sleep for several days in a row.
Standing half a body length behind is Han Fei, dressed in a purple python robe. This time, Lin Bonan arranged for him to be the military supervisor, in case the Zhen family has skilled protectors.
Han Fei smiled and said, "Master Lin... no, General Lin, after capturing the treasonous rebels this time, I'm afraid you will be promoted three levels and officially enter the ranks of the officials. I believe that with General's talent and the support of Prime Minister Lin, you will definitely become the leader of the military in a few years. Our family is willing to stand by a strong tree and enjoy the shade, so we would like to establish a good relationship with you in advance. I hope General won't look down on us."
General Lin felt relaxed upon hearing these words. He knew that this eunuch, dressed in a python robe, held a significant status and was a rare master at the Grandmaster level. Therefore, he restrained his pride and humbly said, "Master Han, I have no experience in leading soldiers. I hope you can give me more guidance. How could I dare to have any complaints? As for the concept of 'good fortune,' if we fulfill our duties for the court, the court will naturally not mistreat us, right?"
Han Fei's eyes flashed with a hint of disdain, but his face showed an even more intense smile. He lowered himself and said, "Yes, yes, yes. General Lin, you are wholeheartedly devoted to your country. This loyalty is truly exemplary for all officials! Although I am currently overseeing the military, I will never interfere with General Lin's command and deployment. Please rest assured, General, and display your talents without hesitation. I would like to preemptively congratulate General Lin on his forthcoming victory!"
Lin Yifang laughed heartily, full of pride.
The army of a thousand people swaggered into the territory of Heyang.