PC Chapter 49

As soon as the cloth gag was removed from Su Cen’s mouth, he doubled over and coughed uncontrollably. The pain from earlier was secondary now as he choked on the blood in his throat, nearly suffocating.

After spitting out a few mouthfuls of blood, Su Cen was roughly grabbed by the chin and lifted up. Xiao Yan’s eyes were bloodshot with rage, glaring at him intensely as he demanded, “Speak!”

“Xiao Yuancheng… cough, cough,” Su Cen coughed again, clearing his throat before continuing, “Xiao Yuancheng was murdered.”

Xiao Yan’s pupils narrowed to a slit, his beard trembling. “What… who? Who dares to harm my Chen’er?!”

“I don’t know.” The hand gripping his chin suddenly tightened, making Su Cen wince in pain. He quickly added, “But I know where he is!”

Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes, studying Su Cen for a long moment. He figured Su Cen couldn’t pull off any tricks, so he let go and stared down at him.

Su Cen knelt on the ground, pretending to think about where to begin, while his mind raced. He had been kidnapped in broad daylight, so someone must have reported it by now. What he needed to do was stall for time, earn Xiao Yan’s trust, and prove his value to avoid being killed as soon as he revealed the truth.

Lowering his eyes to appear submissive, Su Cen said, “The heir, the prince, and all of Liangzhou were likely being used.”

“From the very beginning, this was a conspiracy. Someone took advantage of the heir’s carefree nature. After the heir punished some commoners, this person followed him, and once the heir left, they killed the people and framed the heir. The heir already had a poor reputation in Chang’an, so at first, even I thought the deaths were his doing. But yesterday, while preparing the bodies of a mother and child, I discovered a hidden fatal wound in their hair.”

“What do you mean?”

Su Cen paused to catch his breath, easing the dull pain in his chest, and continued, “Someone used just two fingers to pierce the Baihui acupuncture points of both victims. It had to be an expert. Does the prince know anyone capable of such a feat?”

Xiao Yan frowned, thinking for a while. “Either way, it wasn’t my son who did this.”

Su Cen nodded sincerely, thinking, If your son had such skill, he wouldn’t have been assassinated in prison.

“So, the heir being imprisoned was deliberately orchestrated. Prince, you know your son. Would he ever commit suicide in prison? Someone must have planned to use the heir’s death to provoke your anger. If you and the imperial court end up in mutual destruction, who stands to gain?”

Xiao Yan’s eyes narrowed coldly. “Are you saying… the Turks?”

“Prince, you already know. Now that you’ve entered the capital to request a command, Liangzhou is leaderless. If anything were to happen to you in Chang’an, Liangzhou would be handed over to others without a fight.”

Su Cen intentionally avoided mentioning what he knew about Xiao Yan’s cooperation with the Turks. First, he didn’t want to anger Xiao Yan, keeping a way out for himself. Second, he wanted Xiao Yan to think he was an outsider, letting him draw his own conclusions. Alliances with foreign powers were never fully trustworthy, and letting Xiao Yan suspect them would work better than revealing everything directly.

Sure enough, when the Turk issue was raised, Xiao Yan fell silent, frowning in deep thought. After a long pause, he asked again, “You said you know where the murderer is?”

“I…”

Just as Su Cen was about to speak, a figure entered the tent. Clad in black from head to toe, with a cold and severe demeanor, the man shot Su Cen a frosty glance before turning to Xiao Yan and saying, “This man is slick-tongued, skilled at sowing discord. Didn’t I warn the prince not to let him speak?”

Su Cen frowned slightly; it seemed this man was the one responsible for capturing him and gagging him.

Xiao Yan appeared to hold some respect and fear for the man in black robes, though it was unclear which sentiment was stronger. After glancing at Su Cen, Xiao Yan said to the man, “He claims Yuancheng was framed and murdered.”

The man in black snorted coldly. “Of course he’d say that. How else would he stay alive? Everything he’s said is just to clear his own name.”

Su Cen quickly defended himself, “Every word I’ve spoken is the truth. If the prince doesn’t believe me, he can examine the bodies of the mother and child at the Dali Temple.”

The man in black sneered, “And conveniently set up a trap at Dali Temple to capture us all, right?”

“I’ll stay as a hostage! Prince, will you let the heir die without knowing the truth?”

“The heir’s death is your doing!” The man in black took a step forward and kicked Su Cen, sending him sprawling to the ground. “Don’t forget what the heir wrote about this man in his letters! He was the one who interrogated him when he was thrown into prison!”

Su Cen’s heart sank, his body going cold. This black-robed man wasn’t someone easy to fool, unlike Xiao Yan. If Xiao Yuancheng had mentioned him in his letters, it surely wasn’t in a favorable light. Su Cen had purposely avoided bringing up the past grievances between him and Xiao Yuancheng, but now everything was laid bare. No matter how eloquent he was, he couldn’t compete with Xiao Yan’s dead son in terms of influence.

As expected, Xiao Yan’s eyes filled with murderous intent. His gaze turned sharp as he grabbed a gold-inlaid curved blade from a nearby weapon rack and began advancing toward Su Cen, step by step.

With his hands still tightly bound behind him, Su Cen couldn’t even stand. In panic, he scrambled backward until he was pressed against the edge of the tent, with nowhere left to go. Desperately, he pleaded, “Only I can uncover the truth and give the heir justice.”

The curved blade was raised high, its tip gleaming with a bloodthirsty coldness. Su Cen felt an icy chill deep in his heart.

Just at that critical moment, a soldier rushed into the tent, flustered. “Report!”

The execution was interrupted. The man in black looked displeased, his face cold as he asked, “What is it?”

The soldier stammered, “The Ning… Prince Ning has arrived.”

Everyone in the tent froze in surprise. Xiao Yan paused, furrowing his brow. “How many people did he bring?”

The soldier replied nervously, “Th-three… three people. They’re already at the entrance.”

As he spoke, someone had already entered the tent, sword in hand. He stood at eight feet tall, with light-colored eyes, and stood respectfully at the side.

Su Cen looked up in disbelief. The man strode into the tent with a calm and composed demeanor, entirely different from the tense and armed atmosphere inside. He wore no armor, only a black robe with wide sleeves, looking less like someone walking into an enemy camp and more like someone on a routine inspection.

Qu Ling’er followed closely behind, his peach-blossom eyes scanning the room. As soon as he saw Su Cen curled up in the corner, his eyes lit up. Ignoring the room full of armed men, he ran over to Su Cen’s side and quickly untied him in a matter of seconds.

Su Cen, supported by Qu Ling’er, slowly walked over to stand before Li Shi. Li Shi frowned slightly, raising his hand to touch the side of Su Cen’s face. “You’re injured.”

“Just superficial wounds, nothing serious.” Su Cen kept his head down, looking at the marks left on his wrists from the tight bindings. The wounds stung faintly as the blood flow returned, but more pressing was his uncertainty about how to face Li Shi. It was his own suspicion that had led to this situation, and now he didn’t know what to say. In the end, he could only bite his lip and whisper softly, “Xiao Yuancheng is dead.”

“I know.” Li Shi wasn’t surprised. He patted Su Cen’s shoulder. “It’s over now.”

Only then did Xiao Yan snap out of his shock. His military advisor had once suggested that capturing this Su kid would lure Li Shi over. At the time, Xiao Yan didn’t believe it. After all, Li Shi was as cunning as a fox, beyond even the usual tricks. Knowing full well that they were targeting him, how could he possibly walk into their trap?

But he had come. It was like seeing peach blossoms bloom in the dead of winter—completely unexpected.

Xiao Yan gave a slight bow of respect toward Li Shi. “Your Highness, I regret not greeting you properly upon your arrival.”

Li Shi slowly stepped forward and, without any politeness, seated himself in the main chair. “An old friend has arrived; of course, I had to come and see for myself.”

Li Shi had spent nearly ten years guarding the border, with Liangzhou being of utmost importance. The two men naturally had frequent dealings. However, once comrades on the battlefield, they now found themselves meeting under these circumstances, which left one feeling a sense of irony.

Xiao Yan replied, “I wouldn’t dare.”

While Xiao Yan was feigning politeness, Li Shi was not holding back at all. He leaned casually against the back of the chair, his gaze turning sharp. “You wouldn’t dare? I think you’re quite daring—marching your troops into the capital. What is it that you wouldn’t dare to?”

Despite being surrounded by his own men, Xiao Yan broke into a cold sweat. Li Shi naturally carried an aura of authority, and just by sitting there, he made others feel the need to lower themselves.

But at this point, Xiao Yan had no choice but to move forward. He stepped closer and said, “It was the court that wronged me first. They forced my son to come to the capital as a hostage, then framed him and threw him in prison. Now he’s dead under unclear circumstances. Does the court not owe me an explanation?”

“Speaking of explanations,” Li Shi glanced at Su Cen, “you beat my person like this. How do you plan to explain that?”

Su Cen’s head shot up in surprise.

Xiao Yan was equally stunned. “Your person… who?”

The meaning behind Li Shi’s words was profound. What did he mean by “his person”? People like Qi Lin were his bodyguards, and the servants of Xingqing Palace were his subordinates. But Su Cen, a legitimate court official, what did it mean to call him his person?

Everyone knew that the late Emperor Taizong had left a will, and for all these years, there had never been any rumors coming from Xingqing Palace. Yet now, Li Shi openly acknowledged Su Cen as his, as if disregarding the will entirely, which could be seen as a grave offense against the imperial lineage.

However, Li Shi seemed unconcerned and continued, “Yuancheng was imprisoned because of his cruelty and violence against the people. Su Cen handled the trial according to the law—what fault is there in that? As for Yuancheng’s death…” Li Shi’s eyes narrowed slightly. “I’d like to ask you, before entering the capital, who did you meet with?”

Xiao Yan’s expression froze. He had thought his connections with the Turks were flawless, yet here was someone, hundreds of miles away in Chang’an, who seemed to know every detail about his guarded activities in Liangzhou. It was unsettling, to say the least.

Li Shi appeared to sigh softly. “If you had come alone, nothing would have happened to Yuancheng.”

Cold sweat now poured from Xiao Yan’s brow. Despite his surroundings, he suddenly felt like he was the one being controlled.

However, Li Shi didn’t seem intent on breaking ties just yet. He continued, “I watched Yuancheng grow up. His death in Chang’an is partly my responsibility. So, I’ll see to it that justice is done.”

“Su Cen,” Li Shi glanced at him, “how long will it take to find out the truth?”

Xiao Yan, still confused, asked, “Find out what?”

Su Cen hesitated for a brief moment, then quickly understood Li Shi’s meaning. He glanced at the sky outside the tent and replied, “Before nightfall. I’ll have the culprit who killed the Young Heir brought back before dark.”

 

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