PC Chapter 53

Golden armor gleamed under the sun, and the deafening sound of battle shook the heavens.

 

Su Cen charged into the tent with his men, and upon seeing Li Shi sitting unharmed at the table, he finally let out a breath of relief.

 

Commander Xie Chong of the Imperial Guard arrived shortly after, kneeling on one knee. “Your Highness, I apologize for my late arrival in protecting you. I beg your forgiveness.”

 

Li Shi stepped down from the table and motioned for him to rise with a wave of his sleeve. “You did well.”

 

Then, walking over to Su Cen, he tucked a stray lock of hair behind Su Cen’s ear and added, “You did well.”

 

Though both were praised with the same words, the tone was vastly different.

 

“You… it was you all along…” Xiao Yan stammered, pointing at Su Cen, his beard trembling. His eyes flickered between anger and heartbreak.

 

“Your Highness,” Su Cen gave a formal bow according to etiquette, “I broke my promise—I went to seek reinforcements.”

 

Before anyone could respond, he continued, “But I also promised to bring back the one responsible for the heir’s death. And now, that person is right here.”

 

Xiao Yan froze. “Who?”

 

Su Cen nodded at Li Shi, then slowly walked toward the black-robed man. “Why did you kill the heir? Now that things have reached this point, isn’t it time to tell us the truth?”

 

“It was you?!” Xiao Yan’s eyes burned with rage as he lunged forward, only to be blocked by Qi Lin’s sword.

 

“Oh?” The black-robed man smirked at Su Cen. “Where did you get such a notion? I planted men in the Dali Temple prison, and they informed me late at night that the heir had hanged himself. I merely passed that message to His Highness. How does that make me the killer?”

 

Su Cen furrowed his brows slightly. As expected, the man was no easy opponent. He must have anticipated that Su Cen would narrow down the suspects by controlling the flow of information, and preemptively struck first. If he truly had spies in the Dali Temple, the news could indeed have leaked before Su Cen could contain it.

 

Seeing the man’s confident smirk, Su Cen shook his head lightly. “Your biggest mistake is being too arrogant.”

 

“Hmm?” The black-robed man shot him a cold glance.

 

“I’ll make sure you lose with no room for doubt,” Su Cen continued. “Do you know your fatal mistake?”

 

Without waiting for a response, Su Cen pressed on, “It lies in the four words you personally wrote: ‘Su Cen wronged me.’”

 

“What?” The black-robed man’s brows knitted together.

 

Su Cen elaborated, “You intended to shift the Northern Liang King’s resentment onto me. Your plan was to have me captured, hoping I’d silently endure until the Northern Liang King killed me in a fit of rage. That would pit the two princes against each other, leaving both sides severely weakened. With the Great Zhou’s morale shattered and no one to stabilize the Longyou region, your Turks would have had free rein. Isn’t that right?”

 

After finishing, Su Cen turned to glance at Li Shi, who looked at him with soft eyes. Su Cen couldn’t help but smile.

 

In the past, he would never have dared to say such things—it would have made him seem too self-important. The Li Shi he knew was calm, restrained, and always mindful of the bigger picture. He would never have risked everything over personal grievances.

 

Yet here he stood, right before Su Cen, alive and real, his tone gentle, and his gaze full of affection.

 

At that moment, Su Cen finally understood—this man, who scorned pretense before others and avoided deliberate displays in private, had always treated him the same, without change.

 

He continued, “The biggest flaw lies in those four words. Never mind how your spies in Dali Temple’s pitch-dark prison managed to see those words on a moldy wall at midnight—the fatal mistake came when you wrote them.”

 

The black-robed man showed no concern.

 

Su Cen lowered his gaze slightly. “In the end, this clue came from the heir himself.”

 

“Chen’er?” Xiao Yan looked up sharply.

 

“When you hanged him from the beam, he was still alive, wasn’t he? You just stood there, watching him struggle, calling for help, and did nothing, right?” Su Cen’s eyes sharpened. “Do you remember his final expression? Was it despair? Or anger? You watched him take his last breath, his eyes wide open in death, didn’t you?”

 

“What you didn’t know is that, in his final moments, he left us a clue.”

 

Su Cen took a breath, no longer withholding the truth. “With his gaze, he marked your position. When I sent people to investigate, we found something—a bloody shoe print left exactly where you stood to write those words.”

 

“The shoe print was deep and distinct, with the pattern on the sole still visible. All we need to do is compare the bloodstains in the tread with the records from Dali Temple, and the truth will be clear.”

 

Li Shi gave a signal to Xie Chong, who immediately approached the black-robed man to remove his boots.

 

“There’s no need.” The black-robed man gave a helpless laugh and looked at Su Cen with a sigh. “I underestimated you. If I’d known, I should’ve killed you at the Eastern Market gate.”

 

“Then I must thank you for your mercy,” Su Cen replied, returning to Li Shi’s side with a smile. “Mission accomplished.”

 

Li Shi’s eyes held unmistakable warmth. “You’ll be rewarded when we return.”

 

Xie Chong ordered, “Take him away.”

 

Suddenly, a furious roar echoed through the tent. “I’ll kill you!” Xiao Yan broke free from Qi Lin’s grasp, lunged forward, and grabbed the black-robed man by the collar, slamming a fist into his face.

 

“I trusted you! You deceived me and harmed my Chen’er! I’ll kill you!”

 

It took five or six guards to restrain Xiao Yan, yet he still managed to kick the black-robed man several times.

 

The man collapsed to the ground, blood streaming from his head, but even as he was dragged up by Qu Ling’er, he laughed coldly, unable to stop himself.

 

“Xiao Yan,” Li Shi said, looking down at him with furrowed brows. “The laws of the Great Zhou will give Chen’er the justice he deserves.”

 

Xiao Yan slumped to the ground in despair. “A lifetime of battles, only to be used by a schemer in the end. Chen’er’s death is my fault—I can blame no one else.

 

But there’s one thing: the loss of Longyou’s territory is my failure, and I am guilty beyond redemption. However, my Northern Liang soldiers are innocent. They had no choice but to follow me.

 

I’ll willingly travel a thousand miles, in shackles, to hand over my military command. Without seeing me, they won’t submit to a new commander. After that, I’ll accept whatever punishment you deem fit.”

 

“But if possible, could you let me die on the battlefield? I’m willing to lead the charge—just let me be the first to attack. If I can cut down a few of those Turks before I die, I’ll have no regrets.”

 

“I’m afraid you won’t get that chance,” Li Shi replied.

 

Xiao Yan’s expression dimmed as hope slipped away.

 

Li Shi continued, “Mo Jie’s forces have likely been driven out by now.”

 

“What?” Xiao Yan jerked his head up.

 

Li Shi glanced at the black-robed man. “I know what you were planning. Even if you lost here, you expected to seize Longyou anyway. But unfortunately, you chose the wrong person to scheme against.”

 

The black-robed man’s smile slowly vanished.

 

Qi Lin added, “Mojie is just a Turkic Yehu, and their real Khan is Mohe. Back when Mohe was young and newly appointed, Mojie monopolized power and repeatedly sought to usurp him. Now that Mohe has come of age and taken control, he sees Mojie as a thorn in his side, though he’s been waiting for the right opportunity to act.”

 

“When my master discovered Xiao Yan’s collaboration with Mojie, he contacted Mohe. So, even though Mojie’s forces crossed the border, they never reached Ganzhou or Suzhou. Mohe’s troops ambushed and annihilated them midway.”

 

The black-robed man’s face darkened with rage.

 

“Hahaha!” Xiao Yan burst into laughter. “After all these years, you haven’t changed! Still as cunning and devious as ever! Hahaha!”

 

Li Shi frowned slightly. “That’s called strategic planning.”

 

“Whatever you call it, it was well done!” Xiao Yan laughed heartily, finally releasing the tension in his heart. He moved to clap Li Shi on the shoulder but suddenly remembered he was still being restrained. Laughing loudly again, he exclaimed, “I’ve never submitted to anyone in my life—but I bow to you! Hahaha!”

 

Once Xiao Yan and the black-robed man were taken away, Su Cen followed Li Shi out of the tent. A light mist filled the air—at last, the long day was over.

 

The deputy commander of the Imperial Guard approached to report, “All the rebel forces have been captured and are awaiting your orders.”

 

Li Shi nodded. Su Cen casually glanced at the rebels kneeling on the ground, but something stirred uneasily in his heart.

 

“Is this everyone?” Su Cen asked.

 

The deputy commander nodded in confusion. “Yes, they’re all accounted for.”

 

Something was wrong—an entire group was missing!

 

The black-clad assassins who had ambushed them in the forest were nowhere to be found.

 

Su Cen spun around, his eyes locking onto Qu Ling’er and the black-robed man. He shouted, “Ling’er, watch out!”

 

In that instant, an arrow shot from the shadows, hurtling straight toward Qu Ling’er’s face!

 

There was no time to dodge. Qi Lin sprang forward and threw his sword hilt, deflecting the arrow mid-air. It clattered to the ground, landing just a step away from Qu Ling’er.

 

The black-robed man seized the opportunity, tossing two smoke bombs and vanishing in the thick haze.

 

With a sudden whoosh, Su Cen felt himself gently pulled, colliding with something both soft and firm. Then, something warm and slightly metallic brushed against his cheek.

 

He slowly looked up and found himself staring into a pair of eyes, vast and brilliant like a sky full of stars.

 

In the next moment, that person collapsed into his arms.

“Protect His Highness!”

Someone shouted near his ear, but all Su Cen could hear was a deafening hum. He stood frozen in place, unable to process anything around him.

 

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