The Turkic King lost a high ranked general and two thousand of his elite soldiers within a single day. He was but of course filled with anger and heartache. He called Cheng Jingrui to explain everything clear up this mess. If he didn't explain it well, then the Kind wanted to sentence him to a beheading.
Cheng Jingrui felt both shock and fear. He knew that there was something strange that happened with the Turkic soldiers and inwardly cursed Zhang Guangyao a thousand times in his heart. That man didn't tell him that the gun cannons would blow up once they were ignited with fire. However, he couldn't dwell on that right now. Cheng Jingrui repeatedly assured the Turkic King that he would help him destroy the Xiao army. Once the Xiao family and their army were destroyed, the promises and agreements according to their prior arrangements would be paid in full.
The Turkic King decided to believe in Cheng Jingrui once more in order to reap the benefits that Prince Yong An had promised him. Furthermore, he had put too much into this agreement, but still hadn't received much benefit from it.
—-
Qiao Chen's pictures had been distributed throughout all of Luodu city. The people's hatred of the Turkic people grew, while their views on the Xiao family and their army changed. Since the Xiao family was willing to fight and protect so fiercely, it didn't matter to them as much whether the Xiao family really was a rebellious faction vying for the throne at the moment. These people were protecting them with their lives. On the other hand, the people began to think poorly of those scholars who pretended to be so noble and virtuous when all they could only enjoy the peaceful lives they cared for through the blood, sweat, and tears of the Xiao family's army. They even had the gall to scorn and vilify the Xiaos even when they were still fighting at the border.
These albums were also delivered to Prince Yong An's hands. Prince Yong An looked at each and every one of these images. All of them bore the mark of Qiao Chen's seal. He knew that Qiao Chen went to the wall with the Xiao family, but he never expected that Qiao Chen's purpose was to draw these pictures to help the Xiaos restore their honor and reputation. Prince Yong An angrily flung the photos against the book case. He was upset, but it didn't matter to him if the Xiao family recovered their reputation. He believed that he was destined to ascend the throne no matter what happened.
It was late in the middle of the night. The city had gone completely dark. This was the time that most people needed to sleep, but the soldiers who guarded the city gates were patriotically standing their ground. They carefully and meticulously watched for movement from outside the city walls to prevent the enemy from using the dark of the night to sneak past the city defenses.
A dozen or so men were dressed in black were hidden in the shadows below. They silently and secretively snuck up the city wall under the cover of the night. Just as they were going to bring down the soldiers on guard from behind, someone beat them to the chase. A group of quicker people dragged the men in black into the shadows, but the soldiers standing guard still pretended to collapse.
Another group of men dressed in black were hiding in the shadows from further in the distance. They saw the signal light up on the gate and immediately rushed to the gates. They were planning on secretly opening the city gates as planned.
The moment the group of men in black brushed their fingers against the city gates, dozens of soldiers rushed forth from the dark and surrounded them.
A soldier lit a torch and illuminated the surrounding area. The men clad in black could no longer hide in the shadows. Xiao Qinan and Qiao Chen also came out of their hiding spots.
"General Shi." Xiao Qinan looked at one of the men in black and said.
The man clad in black was initially thinking about how to escape the soldiers' encirclement. However, once he saw Xiao Qinan's sudden appearance, his heart dropped. Xiao Qinan wasn't someone people could escape from. He was too strong and fierce. Then, when Xiao Qinan called out his name and position, he was even more astonished. His eyes widened in shock and fear.
"You and Prince Yong An colluded with the Turkic enemy and deliberately released the Turkic soldiers into the city limits, so they could commit mass murder. How will you explain your actions to the people of the Great Wei Kingdom? How will you explain yourself to the families of those who died?" Xiao Qinan asked angrily.
General Shi tore the black cloth on his face, knelt on the ground, and cried, "Prince Yong An forced me. His Highness holds my wife, children, and mother in his hands. I had no other choice."
"Your wife, children, and mother's lives were on the line, but weren't the lives of all these people in the city on the line as well? They were someone's children, someone's wife, and someone's mothers too." Qiao Chen questioned. Qiao Chen remembered that in the previous life that it was Gneral Shi who led the Turkic soldiers into the city, poisoned the Xiao family and their army, and caused all the citizens' deaths. When Qiao Chen remembered the terrible and tortuous way that Xiao Qinan had to die… Qiao Chen was itching to hack that general into tiny little pieces.
Xiao Qinan had his soldiers drag the colluders away. Then he stationed his soldiers back into their hiding spaces in the dark as they waited for their next ambush.
The Turkic soldiers saw the signals light up on the top of the gates. Then the city gates opened. They immediately rushed into the city. In order to successfully ambush those within the walls, they stayed as quiet as possible while still moving at their fastest speeds.
Once all the Turkic soldiers entered the city walls, the gates immediately closed behind them. Torches began to light up all across both sides of the street. The Turkic soldiers were all in a panic. This wasn't a part of their plans. They looked all around them as the entire area was enveloped in light and realized that they had been ambushed instead. The leading Turkic general wanted to direct his soldiers to retreat back to the city gate, but there were many Xiao soldiers who blocked their path with gun cannons in hand.
The Xiao family's army shot out arrows. The arrows fell like raindrops in a heavy storm. The Turkic soldiers were surrounded and had nowhere to run. Cries of pain rang out in the air.
…
The Turkic King and Cheng Jingrui waited anxiously at the Turkic base camp.
The Turkic King immediately called in the soldiers when he heard news of a soldier's return, "How is the current situation?"
"Our soldiers have entered the city walls, and we heard the sounds of screams and battle within the city." The soldier reported.
"Go check the situation again." The Turkic Kind knew just how strong the Xiao family was, so he didn't dare relax so easily.
"Please be at ease, King. I had General Shi head down to their main water well too. The poison should have infected all of their drinking water by now. Moreover, it's late into the night already. The Xiao family army should have their defenses low. They are not at the Turkic soldiers' level." Cheng Jingrui said confidently.
"Xiao Qinan is not that simple of a person. Our Turkic army has suffered many losses all due to his hand. Don't make plans based on assumptions." The Turkic King replied. He didn't feel at all rest assured just because of Cheng Jingrui's words.
Day light broke, and the sky slowly brightened. A Turkic soldier once again ran into the Turkic King's tent and reported, "My King, our soldiers have returned. We can see them from a distance, and there does not seem to be much loss- if any."
"Good!" The Turkic King stood up and said excitedly. "Come with me to welcome back our Turkic heroes."
The Turkic King watched as the Turkic soldiers marched closer and closer from the distance. He felt ecstatic and excited. The Xiao family army was destroyed. There would be no one in the entirety of the Wei country to confront them anymore.
Cheng Jingrui stood behind the Turkic King and was also very excited. No one could stop Prince Yong An from ascending the throne now that the Xiaos were gone. Even if he didn't become a lofty and high-ranking minister, as the main contributor who helped Prince Yong An's ascension, he would undoubtedly be able to oppress or operate as he pleased all across Wei country.
The Turkic King let all the excitement go to his head. He didn't realize anything was wrong until the Turkic soldiers were nearly in front of them. The soldiers suddenly drew their swords and yelled out a war cry. The Turkic King finally realized that although these people were wearing the Turkic soldier uniforms, their faces looked nothing like the Turkic people.
The Turkic King and Cheng Jingrui saw that the situation wasn't in their favor and quickly fled. The other Turkic soldiers stationed nearby advanced forward to block the fake Turkic soldiers. Amid the chaos, the Turkic King saw large numbers of Wei country's soldiers rushing from the distance. He wanted to order his soldiers to quickly retreat, but it was too late. They were completely surrounded.
Cheng Jingrui was stuck in the middle of this battle. He knew that the plan had completely failed. The Turkic King was even in grave danger. He had to rush back to Luodu city and report this to Prince Yong An and ask him to find a way to prepare for the fallout.
"Ahhg!" Cheng Jingrui wanted to escape during the confusion, but was hit by an arrow. It dug deep into his shoulder, and he fell to the ground.
"Master!" Ling Jiu cried out. He was originally supposed to protect Cheng Jingrui as his master escaped, but allowed his mater to get injured. Ling Jiu had no time to scold himself. He immediately helped Cheng Jingrui up and prepared to flee.
Cheng Jingrui looked back and saw Qiao Chen sitting in the distance, bow and arrow in hand. Cheng Jinrui knew it was him at once. He grit his teeth, ignored the pain throbbing in his shoulder, and said to Ling Jiu, "Quickly get me out of here."
Ling Jiu ran off to the side and grabbed a horse. He pushed Cheng Jingrui on it and quickly took him away. Qiao Chen just watched from afar. He didn't have anyone stop them nor did he send someone to chase after them.
The Turkic King was captured, and Xiao Qinan personally beheaded him for the crimes he committed against the Wei people. The Turkic soldiers, as well as several generals, were all rounded up and killed as well. The rest captives were captured and jailed.
Qiao Chen searched the Turkic King's tent and found ample amount of evidence of Prince Yong An's collusion with the Turkic King. If he included General Shi's evidence and testimony, then Prince Yong An would be able to argue his case. Xiao Qinan suppressed the news of the Xiao family army's overwhelming victory. Then he and Qiao Chen returned to Luodu city with the Flying Tiger Battalion.
Cheng Jingrui didn't have much time. He only stopped for a moment and barely dealt with his wounds, before he hurried back to Luodu city to report the matter to Prince Yong An. By the time Cheng Jinrui reached Prince Yong An's palace, the wound on his shoulder had already festered.
Prince Yong An looked at the pale Cheng Jingrui as he unsteadily ran in. His heart thumped and had a premonition that things were bad.
"What's the matter?" Prince Yong An quickly walked to Cheng Jingrui, who was about to fall, and asked.
"The plan failed. The Turkic army was defeated, and I'm afraid that the Turkic King has lost his life. Prince…"Chen Jingrui collapsed before he could finish speaking.
"How could this have happened? Why did the plan fail?" Prince Yong An emotionally asked Cheng Jingrui.
"It-It was Cheng Jingyun. He joined hands with other people and sabotaged the gun cannons." Cheng Jingrui weakly said. On the journey back, he meticulously thought over everything that had happened. He believed that Cheng Jingyun was probably with Zhang Guangyao. That was why the Xiao army knew how to make the gun cannons explode. Even at this point, Cheng Jingrui didn't forget to hide his failures or skirt his responsibilities. He mentioned nothing about how his plans to poison or ambush the Xiaos in the middle of the night failed too.
"Cheng Jingyun?" Prince Yong An asked. He wondered how Cheng Jingyun, a mere painter, would have such skill. It should have been Xiao Qinan. He thought, but a scream suddenly erupted and interrupted his train of thought.
"AHHHHHH!" The maid's screams came from inside.
"What are you yelling for?" The upset Prince Yong An walked angrily towards the inner area of the palace to see what was happening.
"L-lamp….the h-horse, the horses…." The maid stammered and pointed at the glass lamp hanging beside Prince Yong An's bed.
Prince Yong An walked closer to his glass lamp and took a look. He saw that the horse would run when the lamp rotated, like normal. However, both of its front legs disappeared. This was the exact lamp that Qiao Chen painted for him before. Was this a curse that foretold his surprising failure through miscalculation or inattentiveness?
Prince Yong An angrily took the lamp down and threw it on the ground. He exclaimed, "Xiao Qinan. Cheng Jingyun. This Prince will never let you get away with it! "
Prince Yong An immediately sent for Yang Sheng and had him send the soldiers to close and guard the gate. He made sure they refused exit and entry to any and all people. Then, he brought Yang Sheng and the rest of the other soldiers into the imperial palace with him.
Prince Yong An was going to storm the palace and force the emperor to decree an imperial edict to give him the throne. Then he would kill that emperor. He wasn't planning on taking the throne this way, but now he had to. Xiao Qinan wasn't dead. The Xiao family army defeated the Turks. Furthermore, everything he worked for would crumble once Xiao Qinan returned to Luodu city. He needed to ascend the throne before Xiao Qinan returned. If the Xiao family dared to resist, then he'd be able to label them as traitors committing treason and inciting a rebellion.
Cheng Jingrui still insisted on entering the imperial palace with Prince Yong An even though he was injured. He knew what Prince Yong An was going to do and was not going to miss the opportunity to participate in the most important step. If he allowed this to leave his grasp, then all of his hard work and dedication for Prince Yong An would be greatly diminished.
The royal guards saw Prince Yong An and his soldiers charge into the palace. However, they didn't know if they should stop him and hesitated. Prince Yong An and his soldiers quickly made their way into the emperor's palace.
"Prince Yong An? What are you trying to do?" The emperor looked at Prince Yong An with horror. Prince Yong An carried a killing intent as he briskly walked towards the emperor, soldiers in tow. The nearby eunuchs and maids ran away and hid in a panic.
Prince Yong An placed his sword on the emperor's neck and threatened, "Draft an imperial edict. You're abdicating from the throne and appointing me as the emperor. Stamp it with the jade seal, be swift about it."
"You want Us to abdicate?" The emperor stared in horror. "You treasonous schemer! You're conspiring against the throne!"
"Stop prattling. If it weren't for the Xiao family, then this throne would have long been mine. You've been emperor for far too long." Prince Yong An grabbed the emperor's collar and threatened, "You abdicate today. Draft the imperial edict now. If you don't, then I'll cut off your flesh piece by piece and make you wish you were dead."
"You're too anxious, Prince Yong An. Do you really think that everything will turn out fine just because you sit on the throne?" Qiao Chen drawled. He and Xiao Qinan came out from behind the curtains.
"You guys…." Prince Yong An stared in shock at the two. Cheng Jingrui was just as surprised. They didn't know how these men were able to surprise them. On further thought, they realized that the Xiaos should have been waiting at the imperial palace to ambush them.
Prince Yong An was terrified when he saw Xiao Qinan. However, he remembered that not only had he brought hundreds of his own soldiers to the palace, but there were still thousands more waiting outside. Would he still be afraid of Xiao Qinan and Cheng Jingyun anymore? Xiao Qian wouldn't be able to fight against a thousand soldiers no matter how strong he was.
Prince Yong An seized the emperor, smirked, and said, "These are all my people here. When This Prince kills the emperor, then This Prince could say that you did it. After all, it was This Prince who came to the imperial emperor's defense and arrested the criminals. This would all justify when This Prince ascends the emperor's throne and cement my reign as perfectly legitimate."
"Are you sure that everyone here are all on your side?" Once these words fell from Qiao Chen's lips, many soldiers rushed in from the windows and the doors. They surrounded Prince Yong An and Yang Sheng's soldiers.
"Do you think that the Yang family army can defeat the soldiers of the Flying Tiger Battalion?" Qiao Chen asked.
Prince Yong An's face paled. It was no secret that every single soldier in the Flying Tiger Battalion was an expert. Just one of them could fight against ten men. Furthermore, the fact that they were able to enter the palace meant that they've already dealt with the soldiers outside. But why didn't he know when the Flying Tiger Battalion entered Luodu city? How could not even hear a single rumor about it?
In reality, Qiao Chen and Xiao Qinan returned a few days before Cheng Jingrui did. Cheng Jingrui had been shot by Qiao Chen's arrow. There was no way he would be able to travel faster than them. That was also the reason why Qiao Chen decided to injure Cheng Jingrui. Then when they returned to Luodu city, they had the Flying Tiger soldiers dress up as commoners before they entered the city. Qiao Chen and Xiao Qinan had long been hiding in the imperial palace and waiting for Prince Yong An's arrival.
"Have them all step aside, or I will kill him." Prince Yong An threatened Qiao Chen and Xiao Qinan. However, from the bottom of his heart, he had no idea whether Xiao Qinan would even be threatened by him.
"Beloved subject Xiao, save this emperor. Save me." The emperor stretched out his hand to Xiao Qinan for help.
"Don't worry, Your Imperial Highness. Prince Yong An won't kill you." Qiao Chen said with a smile.
Prince Yong An looked at Qiao Chen angrily. Just as he was stuck in this dilemma, the Flying Tiger Battalion escorted many ministers into the room. There were many ministers who supported Prince Yong An and the Xiao family. They were shocked to see Prince Yong An keeping the emperor hostage with a sword at his throat. Because of this, Prince Yong An's heart was thrown into an even more anxious state when the other ministers watched his every move.
"Prince Yong An. Not only have you colluded with the enemy Turkic group where you had General Shi deliberately allow the Turkic soldiers into the cities to pillage and loot, but now you're kidnapping the emperor? Do you know how heavy your sins are?" Qiao Chen asked.
"What right do you have in questioning This Prince?" Prince Yong An angrily asked Qiao Chen.
Qiao Chen raised an eyebrow, turned to Xiao Qinan, and said, "He says I'm not qualified, so you come here."
"You can choose the way you want to die now. You aren't leaving this room alive." Xiao Qinan said bluntly.
Prince Yong An's faced turned uglier. Xiao Qinan basically told him that it would be useless even if he took the emperor hostage.
"How can you just let him die here? After all, shouldn't you let him wander the streets wallowing in the people's vitriol and spit before he dies?" Qiao Chen was a little helpless in regards to Xiao Qinan's rudeness.
Xiao Qinan had the soldiers hand the evidence of Prince Yong An's collusion with the Turkic King over to the ministers, so they could pass it around amongst themselves.
The ministers looked at the letters containing Prince Yong An's seal. The letters promised that as long as the Turkic soldiers would be able to kill Xiao Qinan, then he would give them as much silver and food as possible. Then, it also promised a number of cities to them if they got rid of the Xiao family army as well.
There were other letters from Prince Yong An that detailed ways to deal with the Xiao family army for several instances. Letters promised General Shi that if he allowed the Turkic soldiers into the city, then Prince Yong An would release, his mother, wife, and children as well as the multiple benefits he would receive.
The ministers' hands were shaking as they held the evidence of Prince Yong An's collusion with the Turkic King. They never would have thought that Prince Yong An would ignore the lives of the people who live near the wall or even sell off several of the Wei country's cities just to get rid of the Xiao family. Prince Yong An wasn't even an emperor yet, but he was able to commit such acts. What more would he do if he actually became the emperor? They shuddered at the mere thought of it.
Even the ministers who originally supported Prince Yong An couldn't help but feel like they were blinded and tricked by Prince Yong An's façade. They could understand that someone would "do what it takes" to become the emperor. However, for a person to collude with the enemy country and treat their citizens' lives as mere playthings…If such a person became the emperor of the Wei Country, then sooner or later there'd be a self-made disaster to sweep across the nation and destroy the Great Wei country.
Xiao Qinan watched until the ministers were on the verge of making their decisions. Then he signaled to his soldiers to take action. The Flying Tiger Battalion soldiers swarmed in. They suppressed Prince Yong An and his soldiers and took them away before they had a chance to resist.
It didn't take long for the emperor to draft and imperial edict to abdicate the throne after the Xiao family's father returned to Luodu city. He handed the throne over to the Xiao family's father.
Prince Yong An was sentenced to be beheaded. On the day of, the evidence of Prince Yong An's criminal behavior was publicly announced. Cheng Jingrui, General Yang Sheng, and General Shi were named as Prince Yong An's main accomplices, so they were sentenced to be beheaded as well.
Numerous people hated the Turkic people, so now there just as many people who hated Prince Yong An as well for colluding with the Turkic people. Smelly eggs and rotten tea dredges were thrown at the prison cart. Some people were even throwing stones.
The Guangde Marquis Manor was a chaotic mess on the day that Cheng Jingrui was imprisoned. Qiao Chen had already separated from the Cheng family. Cheng Jingrui was to be beheaded. The Old Madame and Madam Xu immediately fainted after they found out. The Cheng family was over.
Later on, the Marquis of Guangde and other officials who helped Prince Yong An were all demoted, had their assets seized, and their possessions confiscated.
The Old Madame became even sicker once she knew that Cheng Su lost his title and official position. She was even worse then an ordinary commoner. Madame Xu asked Cheng Su to go to Qiao Chen and asked him to help and rescue Cheng Jingrui. However, he could neither see Qiao Chen's hide or hair.
The Guangde Marquis Manor had all of its possessions seized, except for Madame Shu's dowry items that had already been taken away by Qiao Chen. All the other family properties were stuffed into the government treasury.
Cheng Su took the Old Madam away and Madame Xu rented a small, dilapidated courtyard for them to live in. The Old Madame was bedridden and required medications, but Cheng Su didn't have any income or financial resources. Madame Shu secretly kept an eye on them and sent people to give them some silver every month to give them some sort of relief. Qiao Chen knew about it, but chose not to say anything. He didn't have much hatred for the Cheng family. He just felt sad that his mother had to suffer for so many years because of the Old Madam. However, the Cheng family was still responsible for their own actions because that was what caused them to fall to such a low point.
The Old Madam was bedridden for several years before she finally died. During this period, she vented all her resentment to Madame Xu. Even though the Old Madam couldn't get out of her bed, her ability to torment people only grew. She treated Madame Xu ten times more harshly than she did Madame Shu.
Every day, Madame Xu had to throw away the Old Madam's urine and excrement, wipe her body clean, and feed her medicine. She was also insulted and berated by her husband for being awful. Then, if she didn't do her job well, then the Old Madam would spit phlegm at her face and forced to kneel for the entire night with no sleep.
Previously, when the Old Madam punished Madame Shu to kneel in the Buddhist hall to copy scriptures all night long, Madame Xu had to get up early to humiliate and gloat over Madame Shu's misfortunes in the morning in addition to the punishment. Now that Madame Xu had experienced this kind of pain herself, she finally understood how it felt when you would desperately cry for help, but no one would save you.
After the Xiao family's father ascended the throne, Xiao Qinan was conferred as the crown prince. The Xiao's father felt that it was better to go off and battle instead of dealing with the court affairs. Therefore, even though he was the emperor, the responsibility was given and handled by Xiao Qinan. He originally wanted to be a carefree and relaxed emperor, but Xiao Qinan refused to be the emperor. The Xiao's father had no choice but to stay as the acting emperor first. He had a strong and sturdy body, so he reigned as the emperor for a very long time.
After Qiao Chen's mother died, he and Xiao Qinan returned to the mountains and secluded themselves. Xiao Qinan left the throne to Xiao Qibei, who only wanted to be a carefree and relaxed prince. Unfortunately for him, his brother threw the responsibility of the emperor's throne in his face and ran away. He thought this was improper and that it wasn't supposed to be like this. His brother just left a letter and then disappeared. He didn't even leave a reason for it. He really didn't want the responsibilities of being the emperor.
Qiao Chen and Xiao Qinan lived in the mountains and forests for decades. They farmed their own land and hunted or fished as they needed. They had almost completely isolated themselves, but were still very comfortable with their lives.
They grew old and gray hair covered their heads. Once day, they sat together and watched the sunset they had seen for each day that they lived with each other here. Qiao Chen leaned on Xiao Qinan's shoulder and slowly closed his eyes.
Xiao Qinan moved Qiao Chen into his arms and watched as the sunset disappeared into the night sky. Once it became completely dark, he closed his eyes with Qiao Chen in his arms.
Qiao Chen finally completely downloaded Xiao Qinan's soul in this lifetime.