Chapter 438: Night Wanderer (2)

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Xiuhe thought for a moment. “It’s hard to say how powerful he is, but his status is very noble. In all the dynasties, the two princes of Yan and Liang are respected. The heir of the Prince of Yan is the future Prince of Yan. In the capital, his status is probably only slightly lower than the Prince of Jing’s. When other nobles and generals meet him, they have to bow.

“But I’ve heard that the Prince of Yan’s heir is quite easy-going and doesn’t put on airs. He’s also generous. As long as the top courtesans on Parasol Street hear that he’s coming, they won’t see any guests, and they’ll only start work after he finishes choosing… But there should be an exception now. Young Master, if you go to Parasol Street, I guarantee that the Prince of Yan’s heir will have to step aside. Those courtesans will definitely surround you…”

Ye Jingtang shook his head and didn’t reply to the joke. He continued, “Where does the Prince of Yan’s heir live?”

“That’s hard to say. He is an outstanding gambler and has won many stores and gardens. He has properties inside and outside the city. Because he likes to play, he runs around all day and basically sleeps wherever he goes. If he doesn’t have any properties nearby, he will sleep in inns and restaurants… 1 heard from the people below that he is on Parasol Street tonight.”

“What experts are around him?”

“All the heirs of the vassal princes have experts protecting them. 1 heard from Third Lady that the person beside the Prince of Yan’s heir is called Fang Shijie. He was originally a Jianghu wanderer. But later, he became a retainer of the Prince of Yan Estate. Because he hasn’t had any public battle results for many years, his martial arts skills are unknown…”

After listening to the information, Ye Jingtang felt that it would be very difficult for someone who hadn’t left the capital for ten years and had such a reputation to contact the Pacifying Heaven Cult or even make use of the Hong Mountain Gang. It was even more likely that the Prince of Yan was the mastermind behind everything. But no matter what, he had to investigate this person carefully.

At this point, Ye Jingtang looked at the sky and stood up. “Continue to acquire information. Let me know if there’s anything important. If Third Lady wakes up, tell her that I’m going to the Black Office and let her rest well.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

“You should rest early too. Don’t stay up late. What if you’re not beautiful in the future?”

“Hehe~”

It was late at night, and most of the streets and alleys of Yun’an City were closed. However, Parasol Street, as well as the brothels on it, was open all night long. Although there were fewer pedestrians than in the evening, there were still carriages and drunk young masters on the brightly lit street.

The Golden Screen Building in the middle of Parasol Street was full of chatter and laughter. In an elegant hall at the back, a few rich young masters of Literary Virtue Bridge, accompanied by beauties, were gambling in full swing.

The Prince of Yan’s heir, Dongfang Shuoyue, had been invited to have fun today. He had drunk a few glasses of wine during the banquet but wasn’t very drunk. Halfway through, he had gone to rest in a nearby room.

Because he wasn’t lustful, and his status was too noble, the owner of the Golden Screen Building didn’t try to act smart and arrange for a girl to accompany him. He only sent him hangover soup and tea.

There was constant laughter around him, and he could vaguely hear some ambiguous sounds. But the beautiful room was rather quiet.

The lights in the room were already off, but Dongfang Shuoyue wasn’t asleep. He was sitting on a tea couch very awake with a frown.

Fang Shijie, the old goateed steward, was sitting on a chair opposite him. He gently rubbed his fingers and discussed softly, “The Pacifying Heaven Cult Master isn’t willing to help us, so it’s a little troublesome. With two Martial Chiefs in the capital, it’s too risky…”

Zhongsun Yan was sitting at the side. He slowly brewed tea and poured himself a cup. “You people of Great Wei all like to think deeply and scheme. In Northern Liang, if you want to lure a tiger away, you will dig up its ancestral graves. With their ancestors dug up, no matter how big a devil someone is, they will most likely go back and bury them personally…”

Zhongsun Yan was good at strange skills, and his thoughts had always been bizarre. The few of them were already used to it, so they didn’t make any comments.

On the other side of the tea couch, there was a rather tough man with sharp eyebrows and tiger eyes that were naturally full of killing intent. His name was Teng Tianyou, and he was the contact between the Green Bandits and the Prince of Yan’s heir. At this moment, he said, “This matter concerns the empress’s life and death. Let alone digging graves, even if Void Jade Mountain collapses, Daoist Xuanji won’t leave the capital at this time. Killing someone only takes an instant. If Daoist Xuanji can’t help for an hour, we can do it. 1’11 get the higher-ups to think of a solution. Don’t worry, Your Highness.”

The Green Bandits were a very mysterious organization. Not only did the Imperial Court know very little about them, but even Dongfang Shuoyue, who was an accomplice, didn’t know their exact structure and leaders. Even the name Green Bandits had been given by the Imperial Court.

Fang Shijie was the personal guard of the Prince of Yan’s heir. It was inevitable that he was wary of allies with unknown identities. He suspected that the Green Bandits were backed by the Prince of Liang and were secretly using them to pick the fruit.

But the Prince of Liang was in the northwest, and most of the people recruited by the Green Bandits were from Northern Liang. It was more likely that the Northern Liang Imperial Court was behind them, but it had never been possible to come to a definitive conclusion about this speculation.

Actually, the heir also had doubts in his heart, but he had already stayed in the capital for ten years. The empress clearly had no intention of letting the heir return to the fief. In the end, it depended on whether the empress or the Prince of Yan couldn’t hold back anymore first. No matter who made a move, the heir would be the first to be abandoned.

If the heir waited until that time, what he would get would not be returning to his hometown but severe punishment. If he wanted to survive in this predicament, he could only break through the situation himself. If he succeeded, he would obtain everything. If he failed, he would escape to a distant place and start over from scratch. No matter what, it was better than waiting to die in the capital.

Therefore, even though he knew that the Green Bandits might be a double-edged sword, without other help, he still had to use them..