roccoschili Chapter 148 Pulling Princess Jue Ling into the Water
Chapter 148 Pulling Princess Jue Ling into the Water
As agreed, Ji Zhao arrived alone at the dilapidated Earth Temple outside the city. The night was dark, and the wind howled, making the temple even colder and damper, a chilling feeling. By the faint moonlight, Ji Zhao found the incense burner and slipped the note with the location of the hidden intelligence into its base. Then, he quietly left the temple and hid in a dark spot not far away, closely observing the movements around it.
Time passed by minute by minute, and Ji Zhao always maintained a high level of vigilance, not daring to relax for a moment. He knew that this contact was of great importance, and the slightest mistake would bring them disaster.
At three o'clock in the morning, a dark figure appeared in front of the land temple like a ghost. The figure moved swiftly, lighting three incense sticks and inserting them into the incense burner. Then, without looking back, he left. Seeing this, Ji Zhao was secretly delighted, knowing that the contact had successfully obtained the intelligence address.
He suppressed his inner excitement and continued to lurk in the dark until 2:30 am, when he once again groped his way to the Earth God Temple. Under the old locust tree, he indeed found a black stone, which was the reply signal they had agreed upon.
Ji Zhao picked up the black stone, and a heavy stone in his heart finally fell to the ground.
With the help of the faint firelight, Ji Zhao hurriedly pressed the black stone onto the white cloth he carried with him. Only a few faint words could be seen on it, "Visit Princess Jue Ling, assassinate Cen Jiexiao."
These words resonated like a thunderbolt in Ji Zhao's mind. He knew his master's methods well. He was always ruthless and would not give up until he achieved his goal. This time, he actually chose to attack a woman. It seemed that this Cen Jiexiao was a tough nut to crack for his master.
Ji Zhao did not dare to delay. After hiding the white cloth, he rushed to the place agreed with Lu Menzhong and others.
"Second brother, how's it going? Have you contacted the Lord?" Lü Menzhong asked anxiously, his voice trembling slightly. Ever since the last operation failed, they had been like stray dogs, constantly in a state of panic, fearing they would be captured and beheaded by the government.
"We've made contact." Yoshizhao said in a calm tone, as if he was talking about something very ordinary.
Hearing Ji Zhao's affirmative answer, Lu Menzhong and others all breathed a sigh of relief, and their tense nerves relaxed a little.
"What does the Lord say? What should we do next?" Yoshira asked. He was always calm and steady, and was Lu Menzhong's right-hand man.
Ji Zhao glanced at everyone and said slowly: "The master means that we should..." He paused deliberately, observing everyone's reaction.
"What do you want us to do? Just tell us quickly!" The impatient fourth brother Lu Menyi couldn't help but urge.
"Let's go visit Princess Jue Ling, and then... kill Sister Cen Xiao!" Ji Zhao paused again, his tone becoming serious.
"What? Why would the Lord do this? What good will it do us if we kill Cen Jiexiao?" Lu Menzhong exclaimed, looking at Ji Zhao in disbelief.
Yoshiaki ignored Lu Menzhong's question and turned his gaze to Yoshira who was standing beside him. He knew that with Yoshira's intelligence, he should have guessed his master's intention.
As expected, Yoshira didn't show much surprise. He just frowned slightly, then relaxed and said calmly, "The Lord is truly powerful. He can even control the princess of the Great Zhou."
Yoshiaki smiled slightly and said nothing, but in his heart he agreed with what Kirara said. How could ordinary people like them guess the Lord's methods?
When Lu Menzhong and others heard Yoshira's words, they were even more confused and had no idea what the connection was.
"Third brother, what is going on? Please explain it to us." Lu Menzhong pulled Ji Liang's sleeve and asked with a puzzled look.
Ji Liang shook his head helplessly and patiently explained, "At the moment, with just a few of us, the chances of capturing Sister Cen Xiao, even if we all perish together, are very slim. My second brother previously told the Lord about our desire to control Sister Cen Xiao, and the Lord felt that Sister Cen Xiao would be more useful dead than alive."
"Being dead is more useful? What's the logic?" Lu Menzhong still didn't understand.
Ji Liang sighed and continued to explain, "Think about it. With Cen Jiexiao's current development, she will sooner or later reach the peak of her power in the Great Zhou Dynasty and be deeply favored by the Emperor. Everyone remember, Cen Jiexiao is the Emperor's person. If she died, how would the Emperor react?"
Lu Menzhong thought for a moment and said uncertainly, "Will...will I be completely confused?"
"That's right!" Kirara snapped his fingers. "When the time comes, we will naturally have plenty of opportunities to complete the tasks assigned by our lord."
Lu Menzhong and others suddenly realized what was going on, and looked at Ji Zhao with admiration in their eyes.
"Second brother, you are really smart. You understood the master's intention so quickly." Lu Menyi said with admiration.
Ji Zhao smiled faintly, but his heart was calm. He knew that he was just a chess piece, a chess piece at the mercy of his master.
"Okay, now that everyone understands, let's get ready. We will visit Princess Jue Ling tomorrow." Ji Zhao ordered.
"Yes!" everyone answered in unison, their tone full of determination.
……
The next day, Ji Zhao and others disguised themselves and came to Princess Jue Ling's residence.
Princess Jue Ling's temporary residence is magnificent with carved beams and painted rafters, showing the royal style everywhere.
After Yoshizhao and the others handed over the introduction cards they had prepared in advance, they were led by the maids through the winding corridors to a quiet courtyard.
Inside the courtyard, a giant wisteria tree was in full bloom, its fragrance filling the air and refreshing the senses. Beneath the flower stand, a woman in a lavender dress lazily reclined on a soft couch, flipping through a book.
The woman had a beautiful and refined appearance, picturesque features, and a noble and elegant temperament. She was none other than Princess Jue Ling of the Great Zhou Dynasty.
"I am Ji Zhao, a commoner, and I am here to pay my respects to Her Royal Highness Princess Jue Ling." Ji Zhao stepped forward and bowed.
Princess Jue Ling raised her eyes slightly, glanced at Ji Zhao and the others calmly, and said in a cold tone, "Who are you? What do you want from me?"
"Reporting to Her Royal Highness, I have been entrusted by the Lord to come and deliver something to Her Royal Highness." Yoshizhao said as he took out an exquisite wooden box from his arms and presented it with both hands.
Princess Jue Ling didn't reach out to take it, but simply asked calmly, "The master's request? What is it?"
"This..." Ji Zhao hesitated, seeming to find it difficult to speak.
"What? Just say whatever you want to say. I don't like beating around the bush." Princess Jue Ling said impatiently.
Ji Zhao took a deep breath and lowered his voice, "Your Highness, this box contains... a secret about Sister Cen Xiao. It also contains a token from my master. Your Highness will know it at a glance."
Princess Jue Ling looked at the word "Mo" engraved on the jade stone of the box, and immediately knew that the person who came was Mo Lei's subordinate.
At the same time, when she heard the three words "Cen Jiexiao", a barely perceptible coldness and curiosity flashed across Princess Jue Ling's originally calm eyes.
"Oh? What secret?" Princess Jue Ling became interested.
Ji Zhao glanced around and confirmed that there was no one else before continuing, "As far as I know, Sister Cen Xiao is not Dean Cen Ke's biological daughter, but..."
He paused deliberately, observing Princess Jue Ling's reaction.
Sure enough, after hearing this, Princess Jue Ling sat up straight, staring at Ji Zhao with burning eyes, and asked anxiously: "But what? Why are you dragging your feet?"
Ji Zhao was secretly delighted, for he knew that he had successfully aroused Princess Jue Ling's interest.
"But... he is a spy from the Xixiang tribe!" Ji Zhao said word by word, his tone full of certainty.
"What? How is this possible?" Princess Jue Ling exclaimed, her face full of disbelief.
Ji Zhao had anticipated Princess Jue Ling's reaction. Pretending to be deeply distressed, he said, "Your Highness, you don't know. I only learned about this by accident. Cen Jiexiao's true identity is actually a killer from the Xixiang tribe. She's been lurking in the Great Zhou with the sole purpose of assassinating the Emperor and overthrowing our Great Zhou!"