A soft chuckle broke the silence of the cliffside once the sound of retreating footsteps had faded away.
"Truly a man who seeks revenge for the smallest grievance," Ye Zhao murmured, a faint curve touching his lips as he glanced back at the empty woods. "Narrow-minded."
His voice was calm as he added, "We’ve been out long enough. It’s time to head back."
Wei Feng, dressed in black civilian attire, emerged slowly from the forest followed by several subordinates. He looked at Ye Zhao with a grave expression. "You noticed us long ago."
It was half a question, half a statement of fact. Ye Zhao remained silent, offering a tacit admission.
"When did you realize?" Wei Feng pressed.
Even though the man before him had shifted from 'Ye Zhao' to 'Tian Shu,' Wei Feng was certain that no miracle had occurred overnight to turn an ordinary man into a martial arts master. Furthermore, because of the change in the man's identity, Wei Feng had been exceptionally cautious in his tracking. He was confident that even Xiao Hongfei likely hadn't detected their trail.
As they moved further east, the weather grew colder, and the wind carried the biting chill of winter.
Ignoring the questions and the probing look on Wei Feng’s face, Ye Zhao pulled his sleeves tighter. He withdrew his gaze from the distant landscape and asked abruptly, "How many men did you bring on this trip?"
"Fifty. Why?" Wei Feng’s tone was stiff, tinged with a hint of dissatisfaction. After speaking, his gaze flickered, and his lips moved as if he wanted to say more, but he forced himself to remain silent.
Ye Zhao seemed not to notice Wei Feng’s awkwardness. His expression remained peaceful, though his next words were far from pleasant.
"Have any of you... ever experienced a life-or-death escape?" he asked, a slow smile spreading across his face.
Seeing that smile, Wei Feng and his men froze, a sense of foreboding rising in their hearts.
***
In a quiet, solemn hall, a hurried voice echoed from outside the doors. "Is my father within?"
"Reporting to the Young Master, the Master is not in."
"Is he truly not in, or is he merely pretending?"
For several days, Xie Mingyuan had been nowhere to be found. Xie Yusong could clearly feel his father distancing himself, but he could not fathom why. Losing his usual reputation for good temper, he raised his voice an octave. "What exactly have I done wrong? Why must Father avoid me so!"
With that, he flicked the hem of his robes and knelt straight down.
The servants outside were thrown into a panic, rushing to help Xie Yusong up, but he remained resolute, unmoving before the door. After a moment, an aged voice drifted from within.
"Come in."
Xie Yusong rose and strode inside. Just as he was about to greet his father, his eyes caught sight of an extra teacup on the table. He understood instantly. "Was Father just hosting a guest?"
Yet he had seen no one leave.
As Xie Yusong’s gaze shifted around the room, the man seated at the head of the hall spoke. "Do you have business with me?"
Xie Yusong withdrew his probing gaze and lowered his eyes. "Why has Father been avoiding me for no reason?"
"I have not."
"Then what has Father been busy with these past few days? Why have you been invisible for so long?"
*Clink.* The sound of a tea lid lightly tapping against the rim of a cup broke the silence.
The room fell still. After a moment, Xie Mingyuan’s voice, unreadable in its emotion, drifted over. "Are you questioning me?"
Xie Yusong stiffened, finally realizing his own urgency. His expression softened as he bowed in apology. "I would not dare. It is only that I have not seen Father for many days and was worried, causing me to lose my composure. I hope Father can forgive me."
"Mhm. Rise." Xie Mingyuan kept his eyelids half-closed. The previous question was brushed aside, and Xie Yusong suppressed his doubts, regaining his usual elegant poise.
He sat down, recalling the talk he had heard outside today. His face grew serious. "Has Father heard the recent rumors?"
"What rumors?"
Xie Mingyuan had not left the house recently, so Xie Yusong assumed he was unaware. He continued, "For some reason, rumors detrimental to the Crown Prince have suddenly begun spreading through the streets. They say..."
"They say the Crown Prince is not His Majesty’s child, but the son of the late Prince of Qin!"
Xie Yusong lowered his voice, his brow furrowed in gravity. Previously, no one had ever attacked the Crown Prince’s lineage; no one had thought of it, and there were no suspicious points to exploit. Why had this claim suddenly surfaced?
As Xie Yusong pondered this, Xie Mingyuan asked calmly, "Did His Majesty believe it?"
Xie Yusong paused. "No."
Even after hearing the rumor, the Emperor had made no move at all, making those who were wavering in their belief look rather foolish.
"If he does not believe it, then it is mere nonsense." Xie Mingyuan’s reaction was tranquil. As a man who had long occupied high office, such minor slanders were not yet worthy of his concern.
Xie Yusong didn't believe the rumors either; he was simply puzzled as to why someone would spread such a thing. To deal with the Crown Prince, were they really resorting to such reckless, blind accusations?
The moment he had heard the rumor, a certain person’s face had flashed through his mind, but he had quickly dismissed it. Su Jinzhou would never use such a vulgar and meaningless tactic.
"What I do not understand is why the person behind this would use such a matter to slander the Crown Prince," Xie Yusong said softly.
Xie Mingyuan looked down, idly brushing the tea lid. "When people are at their wits' end, they resort to any means necessary. A method that seems foolish may, until the very last moment, turn out to be a masterstroke or a futile effort. Who can say?"
Xie Yusong keenly sensed something amiss, but he couldn't pinpoint the strangeness. He assumed he simply hadn't grasped the depth of his father's words and fell into silent thought.
Xie Mingyuan had no intention of keeping him longer. He propped his head on one hand, looking weary. "Enough. If there is nothing else, you may go."
Xie Yusong snapped out of his thoughts and saw the exhaustion on his father’s face. He said no more, bowed, and prepared to withdraw. Suddenly, he remembered something. "Right, Father, how is Uncle Li’s illness? Perhaps I should visit the manor to check on him?"
The man with half-closed eyes slowly lifted his lids, staring quietly at Xie Yusong.
"He has contracted a plague," Xie Mingyuan said. "It is not suitable for him to see anyone for now. The physicians are enough."
Hearing this, Xie Yusong understood and did not press further, obediently taking his leave.
Once he was outside and walking along a deserted corridor, his expression darkened instantly. He looked back at the estate—scenery he was intimately familiar with—yet he could not suppress the feeling of wrongness. These past few days, he had sensed a subtle, strange atmosphere in the residence.
It was too quiet.
The silence made him inexplicably uneasy, as if even his father was hiding something from him.
What exactly was happening?
It wasn't just his home; the situation at court had also become markedly tense. The struggle between the Crown Prince and Prince Rong had intensified to the point where they no longer bothered with pretenses. It was as if long-hidden grievances had suddenly erupted, leading to a fierce struggle for dominance.
In the end, the Crown Prince lost.
One day after court, Prince Rong, unable to restrain his rage, had actually struck the Crown Prince in front of all the civil and military officials. Yet, in the end, Emperor Wei had only punished Prince Rong with a period of confined reflection.
This was equivalent to throwing the Crown Prince’s dignity on the ground and trampling it.
Immediately, many officials began their own calculations, and one after another, they started siding with Prince Rong. It wasn't as if the Emperor’s lack of regard for the Crown Prince was a new development; even the Crown Prince himself felt it keenly.
"Yusong! Imperial Father truly has no regard for Our dignity anymore!"
Inside the Eastern Palace, the room was a mess. Shards of broken porcelain littered the floor, and ink-stained papers were scattered everywhere.
Crown Prince Wei Ling stood in the center of the room, his eyes bloodshot. He panted heavily like an infuriated bull. Unvented rage, unspeakable grievances, and unresolvable resentment had brewed into a vat of black bile in which his heart was submerged. As time passed, it only grew more toxic.
A heavy malice leaked from his wide eyes, his face contorted like a vengeful ghost, bearing no resemblance to the elegant and benevolent Crown Prince of the past.
Xie Yusong sighed inwardly, trying to soothe him with a gentle tone. "Your Highness, now is not the best time to deal with Prince Rong."
In truth, they simply did not have enough power to confront Prince Rong, who held a significant portion of the military. It would be like throwing an egg against a stone.
Did the Crown Prince not understand this? He did! It was precisely because he knew the bitter taste of having no soldiers that he had endured until now. But his status as Crown Prince dictated that he could not hold military power like Prince Rong.
Could it be... that the rumors were true? Was he truly not his father's child?
All his resentment and anger eventually evolved into a sliver of hatred for his Imperial Father and a doubt regarding his own identity. He suddenly realized what he was thinking and regained his senses. Turning his back to Xie Yusong, he waved a hand. "You may leave. We wish to be alone."
Xie Yusong opened his mouth to speak but ultimately answered with a "Yes."
It was no wonder the Crown Prince was dissatisfied. After all, Prince Rong... had been raised up by the Emperor’s own hand. In the end, he had become a power equal to the Crown Prince, even suppressing him from time to time.
*Sigh...*
Xie Yusong lamented in his heart. What exactly was His Majesty thinking?
Just as he left the palace, he encountered someone he did not wish to see at the gates. Seeing the young man in green robes and a cloak, Xie Yusong said nothing, his face cold as he prepared to brush past him.
The other man spoke up. "I have something to discuss with you."
Xie Yusong had no desire to talk. The string of recent events was enough to give him a headache. He refused directly, "There is nothing to be said between us."
"Have you not felt that recent events are strange?"
Xie Yusong sneered. "What is strange? Is it not just your clever schemes?"
With that, they passed each other.
Behind him came Su Jinzhou’s faint sigh. "I did not expect you to become so foolish."
Xie Yusong stopped in his tracks. If anyone could see his face, they would find his gaze cold enough to freeze a man to death.
Su Jinzhou turned around, looking at Xie Yusong’s back, and slowly uttered, "Do you really think Prince Rong won this time?"
"No. We all lost."
Su Jinzhou remained composed, casually smoothing his outer robe which had been ruffled by the wind. He walked slowly toward Xie Yusong. "Have you not realized? We were all calculated into a game by someone long ago, without even knowing it."
His voice rose slightly at the end, sounding mocking, surprised, and laced with a hint of disbelief.
The friction between Prince Rong and the Crown Prince had been so intense lately that it felt as if a hand were secretly pushing them forward, exacerbating their conflicts and driving them to fight until they were bloodied. Su Jinzhou had long sensed the anomaly. After much thought, he had come to find Xie Yusong.
Because Xie Yusong, like him, was a pawn within the scheme.
After a long silence, Xie Yusong glanced sideways and asked in a low voice, "Where shall we talk?"
Su Jinzhou smiled, the chill surrounding him dissipating significantly.
However, to their surprise, a few days later, Pei Yunting suddenly arrived at the Xie residence. He came to ask if his father was there. But Pei Shian was not at the Xie house, nor was he at the Wei house.
After a thorough search yielded nothing, everyone finally realized: Pei Shian had vanished!
No one knew when he had disappeared or who had taken him. He had vanished completely, leaving no trace behind.
In the shadows, an invisible net seemed to have descended over everyone’s heads. No one knew who would be caught within it next...
***
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Once, I Was a Legend | Chapter 98 | The Invisible Net | Novela.app | Novela.app
