SYM 109
by Emerlyn“Well, I’m relieved to see you acting arrogant. It must mean you’re that confident.”
The Third Prince sighed.
The biggest reason he hadn’t rashly attacked the Hongbaek Sect, despite having this much information, was the leader.
The Third Prince had been granted twenty members of the Eastern Depot, thirty Brocade Guard members, and soldiers from the Emperor for the Hongbaek Sect matter.
The Eastern Depot members, raised directly by the Imperial family, were each killing machines, and the Brocade Guard members were all martial artists above the level of first-rate experts. However, even if he invested all that power, the Third Prince couldn’t see a clear path to victory in his mind.
That’s how astonishing Jeong-hyeon’s Martial Arts were.
“The leader, that bastard’s Martial Arts, I can’t dare to fathom with my abilities. But you should be able to do something about it. Good, I’ll entrust everything about the leader entirely to Cheong-un, to you.”
“Leave it to me.”
“Then when will we strike?”
“I’ll prepare the items today and tomorrow, and we’ll go tomorrow night.”
Eun-hyeon was startled by the words “tomorrow night” and looked at Cheong-un.
“If we’re going to strike anyway, it’s best to move when they haven’t yet grasped the situation. The more time passes, the more they’ll prepare.”
“Alright. Good. I’ll tell them it’s tomorrow night. And as I said before…”
“I will eliminate everything related to the Imperial family within the Hongbaek Sect.”
“Good.”
The Third Prince nodded deeply. That seemed to be the condition the Third Prince had presented when joining hands with Cheong-un.
“If word gets out that the Imperial family is involved in kidnapping the people and performing human sacrifices, I’ll be told that the Zhu Emperor has been reborn. Such a thing must never happen during Father’s reign. This matter will be quietly covered up as something that has nothing to do with the Imperial family. Do you understand what I mean?”
Eun-hyeon nodded diligently as he saw the Third Prince’s gaze turn to him. Right now, the Imperial family’s help was more urgent than revealing the Imperial family’s flaws.
Hadn’t Jeong-hyeon come all the way here under the direct order of the Martial Arts Alliance Leader? As long as Jeong-hyeon was the leader of the Hongbaek Sect, the Martial Arts Alliance couldn’t be trusted right now either.
In short, this matter had to be resolved with the Demonic Sect and the Imperial family as the main players.
As he organized his complicated thoughts and briefly summarized the incident, he couldn’t help but sigh.
The greatest enemy in the Central Plains had appeared, but the resolution would be carried out by the Demonic Sect and the Imperial family, excluding all righteous Martial World people. It was truly absurd for Eun-hyeon, who felt a sense of pride as a righteous Martial World person.
“Haa, so have we covered all the important topics for now? Since the actual move won’t be until tomorrow night anyway, I should rest a bit in the meantime.”
Come to think of it, the Third Prince’s face looked exhausted. The Third Prince must have suffered quite a bit from this matter as well.
“If you need my help in the meantime, tell Eunuch Jang. Eunuch Jang, help them to the extent that it doesn’t cause problems.”
“Yes, Your Highness. This Eunuch Jang will follow Your Highness’s orders.”
Eunuch Jang respectfully clasped his hands and bowed. Seeing Eunuch Jang’s appearance, Eun-hyeon was once again reminded that the person in front of him was a prince.
“I’m sorry, but I’ll take my leave first.”
The Third Prince pressed his temples with his hand and rose from his seat.
As Cheong-un and Eun-hyeon also tried to rise and greet him, the Third Prince waved his hand dismissively and disappeared.
“Eunuch Jang, we’re going to rest for a while and talk among ourselves, so would you please excuse us for a moment?”
At Cheong-un’s words, Eunuch Jang smiled and bowed his head.
Eunuch Jang’s every action seemed subtly smooth and light, and Eun-hyeon thought he must have mastered that kind of Martial Arts.
“Understood. And we have ointments and medicines used in the Imperial family, would you like me to bring some? If you need anything, please tell this Eunuch Jang.”
Cheong-un glanced at Eun-hyeon at those words.
He could see the chafed wrists and dirty clothes from being bound.
He must have been too preoccupied with being dragged around to notice until now, but he would probably suffer from quite a bit of muscle pain once the tension was released.
“Eunuch Jang, thank you for your consideration. Please bring the medicine. And if possible, please also prepare a bath.”
“I will prepare a bath in the next room. Do you need someone to assist with the bath?”
“Assistance with the bath is not necessary. While the bath is being prepared, please bring some simple snacks.”
“Shall I prepare a meal?”
Cheong-un looked at Eun-hyeon, and Eun-hyeon shook his head. Perhaps because of the continued tension, he wasn’t hungry right now.
“Something simple like porridge would be nice.”
“Understood. I will have soft rice porridge prepared. Please talk comfortably.”
As Eunuch Jang went outside, Cheong-un deployed a Qi barrier.
Only then did Eun-hyeon let out a long sigh.
“Cheong-un, what is the whole story?”
“I infiltrated the Third Prince’s residence and saw the Third Prince interrogating the Hongbaek Sect there. Seeing that, it was clear that the Third Prince was not a member of the Hongbaek Sect.”
“Ah…”
“I thought the Demonic Sect was also skilled at interrogating people, but the Imperial family’s technicians were also quite impressive. I wanted to bring our interrogators to observe.”
Eun-hyeon felt nauseous at Cheong-un’s words.
“That Third Prince is also amazing. Seeing him watch that without batting an eye, I guess not just anyone can become a member of the Imperial family.”
“…So you’ve been with the Third Prince since then? You found out that I was imprisoned and that Eldest Senior Brother is the leader at that time too?”
Cheong-un nodded.
“That’s right. I learned about Master’s situation through the Third Prince.”
“Haa… Father and Eung-wang must be safe, right?”
“They probably are. According to what I heard from the Third Prince, they are just being held after a simple interrogation. Jeong-hyeon probably intended to perform the Rite while they were imprisoned. He probably used that method because it would also cut off contact with the Martial Arts Alliance.”
“Why on earth is Eldest Senior Brother doing such a thing…? Haa. No, we need to deal with more important matters than that. So, are you planning to use the antidote prepared by the Demonic Sect?”
“That’s right. I think we should dilute what came from the Demonic Sect and use it, and we should check what came from the Tang Clan before using it.”
“I guess so, Eldest Senior Brother prepared it, so he might have done something to the antidote.”
“And it seems that the Hongbaek Sect and Imperial Noble Consort Gyeongsun are involved.”
“Imperial Noble Consort Gyeongsun?”
Eun-hyeon was ignorant of the Imperial family’s genealogy, so he tilted his head.
“The current Emperor has two Empresses and five concubines. Imperial Noble Consort Gyeongsun is the woman who received the highest rank among the concubines, and she has one prince and one princess under her. The problem is that the son Imperial Noble Consort Gyeongsun gave birth to is the eldest prince.”
“The eldest prince?”
“The Emperor’s eldest son. Of course, just because he is the eldest prince does not mean he will inherit the throne, but Imperial Noble Consort Gyeongsun’s heart was different. So, she seems to have made a deal with the Hongbaek Sect for the position of crown prince.”
“Haa, for that reason, with the Hongbaek Sect…? Hearing the story, Imperial Noble Consort Gyeongsun and Madam Hwang seem similar. The Hongbaek Sect probably approached those with such weaknesses first.”
Connecting the stories of Imperial Noble Consort Gyeongsun and Madam Hwang, he felt like he understood the Hongbaek Sect’s approach to people.
“The Third Prince and the Emperor also know that Imperial Noble Consort Gyeongsun is involved with the Hongbaek Sect, but the Emperor doesn’t seem to want to associate the eldest prince with this matter. So, he is having the Third Prince quietly investigate and cover up the matter.”
“…But isn’t it already too late to quietly cover up the Hongbaek Sect’s affairs, with so many people already dead, injured, or involved?”
“Master, in the end, the masses will believe what those above are saying. Think about the Godeok Temple incident too. Those in power know the inside story, but the truth was appropriately manipulated and not revealed, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, it was.”
Thinking that even the victims who were directly harmed by the Hongbaek Sect might not know the inside story made him feel a little bitter.
“Let’s think about those things later. We still need to solve the immediate problems first. For now, I will go alone tomorrow night.”
“…You alone, Cheong-un?”
“Master, please stay in the prince’s residence. No matter how much it is the Hongbaek Sect, it will be difficult for them to invade a prince’s residence. Right now, this place is safer than anywhere else in Beijing.”
“That’s true, but…”
“Right now, it’s difficult to trust anyone else, including the Martial Arts Alliance. The Third Prince is clearly aiming for the same goal as us, so we can trust him for now.”
Looking at Cheong-un’s deeply sunken eyes, Eun-hyeon couldn’t say anything.