Hong Shizi had just felt an acute pain below his body when he was already thrown onto the ground.
All around him, he heard yelling and shouting.
He saw that all his families, his wife, his concubines and his children, were lying motionless on the ground, dead.
There were people wailing and calling for help. Just then, a pair of feet appeared in his sight.
With much efforts, Hong Shizi raised his eyelids and saw his third younger brother Hong Fang.Hong Fang tilted his body slightly towards him and was in a gesture where, in the eyes of the bystanders, as if he was there to help him up.
"Brother, please hel…"Hong Shizi had hardly finished his words of calling for help when he felt a surge of warm and salty blood rush to his throat.
"My elder brother, do you like my gift?" whispered Hong Fang in Hong Shizi's ear, quickly putting away a dagger in his sleeve.
Hong Shizi's bloodshot eyes were suddenly wide open, shouting hatred and disbelief.
It was him! It had always been him!
The words was no longer fully said when Hong Fang slapped on the crown of his head. Hong Shizi's body fell softly to the ground.
"Hong Mingyue, how dare you plotting against His Majesty!"Marquis Wu, Gu Cangtian, put himself in front of the Empress, the Empress Dowager and the late emperors' sons such as Feng.
The blast just now was so shocking and so powerful that the entire Imperial Drill Ground turned into a sea of fire and ruins, scattered with bodies and injuries.
Lan Yingwu and Nie Fengxing, commanding a Yulin Army (the personal army of the emperor) in hundreds, confronted the Hong family.
Behind Hong Fang lined about a hundred warriors of cultivation as well as hundreds of disciples of the Buddhist Monks Sect.
The several generals, including Marquis Anguo, all stood behind Hong Fang.
"Honorable Marquis Wu, if I were you, I would not be so eager to lose my temper." Hong Fang showed not a sign of fear in front of Marquis Wu, Gu Cangtian.
"Qi, my son!" cried Empress Liu.
Xia Houqi was controlled by Hong Mingyue. Luo Song and that elder man from the Three Lives Valley also stood behind Hong Fang.
Seeing that they took the crown prince as a hostage, Gu Cangtian's face changed a bit.
All that was inside of him was a tameless riot of fury.
Some days ago, Lan Yingwu suddenly came to report that the Hong family had intended to start a coup.
Gu Cangtian interrogated him of the source of this information. Lan Yingwu did not answer him directly, saying only that the message was delivered by a sect call the Ghost Sect.
Gu Cangtian severely criticized Lan Yingwu for a.s.sociating with the Ghost Sect. He knew very well what kind of sect it was. As a member of the regular army of Da Xia, he despised the conspiratorial a.s.sociation with gangs.
Besides, though he had been battling with Hong Qingyun for most of his life so far, he had always felt that Hong Qingyun was not the kind of person who would betray Da Xia.
But look what disaster his carelessness had led to!
The Emperor was killed. Even the crown prince had fallen into the enemy's hands.
Gu Cangtian's level of cultivation was much higher than that of Hong Fang's. But, worrying that there might be other conspiracies from the Hong father and daughter, he dared not make reckless moves.
For some time, the two camps were locked in confrontation.
Suddenly, there was a small voice, very light and soft.
A giggle.
Both Hong Fang and the Marquis Wu frowned: who could find this very moment funny?!
"Hong Shisan! What are you laughing at?"
Hong Mingyue was the closest to the source of laughter. So she was able to see clearly who it was.
Hong Shisan was still standing where he had been, with a nonchalant expression on his face that was very different from the rest of the people on the scene.
The new champion in the Imperial Contest was perfectly composed and at ease. He was looking curiously at Hong Fang and Hong Mingyue with a pair of pretty eyes that makes a woman jealous.
Hong Fang seemed to be extremely alert. He had an intuition that this Hong Shisan was not a n.o.body.
Some moments ago, among the chaotic scenes where the emperor was killed and the drill ground was blown up, he had neither run nor engaged himself, simply watching aloofly from the outside.
Untamed, but cool-headed, indeed he was some talent.
Thoughts went through Hong Fang's mind and right then he decided to win Hong Shisan over to him.
"My brother Shisan, it's an honor to make your acquaintance. You've seen the situation. If you come and join me, we will offer you the most respectable status in court, second to only the emperor himself."
"Hong Fang, you traitor! Hong Shisan, do not listen to his shameless words. The Hong family has flouted the order and stirred up riots. The whole world despises them," shouted Xia Houqi in anger.
"Xia Houqi, a winner is a winner and a loser will be a loser. Your emperor father was a useless person. If not for the loyal and devoted service from me and other marquis, Da Xia could never have earned such a peaceful and prosperous reign!"
Hong Fang snorted in contempt. His eyes traveled back to Hong Shisan.
"Join us. It will only do you good. I have not only the Hong family to back me up. Even Marquis Wu would be intimidated by the power behind me."
Father Hong Qingtian should have shown up long ago. Though they won by number, Gu Cangtian was able to take on the whole gang with his level of power. If they hadn't had the crown prince as their hostage, Hong Fang would not dare to directly confront with Marquis Wu.
In a situation like this, Hong Shisan, who had bedazzled everyone at the Imperial Contest, had no doubt become a decisive factor for both party.
"Hong Fang, are you trying to say that the power behind you is Dan Palace in North Qing?" Hong Shisan raised his eyebrows.
Hearing the name, Hong Fang was taken by surprise.
"Perhaps you are curious: how do I know?" Hong Shisan smiled a formal smile, taking out a letter from his sleeve.
The moment the letter was shown, strings of shrills were heard behind Hong Fang: a hundred warriors of cultivation wielded their knives and chopped off the heads of those disciples of the Buddhist Monks Sect.
Hundreds of heads rolled.
"Husband! Save us!"
Hong Fang and Hong Mingyue's face went pale.
Zhu Gerou and Hong Yulang was also contained by the Thirteen Killers of the Ghost Sect headed by Yan Che and did not look good in their face.
Looking at the letter in Hong Shisan's hand, Hong Fang felt explosion in his ears and his brain went blank.
"I suppose I need to introduce myself once again. I am Hong Shisan, head of the Ghost Sect. I'm sorry but the letter was just a joke." Hong Shisan smiled cruelly, showing his shiny teeth.
Hong Fang felt that his world was spinning.
'It's fake.' The letter. It was fake!
Hong Shisan. It was all his scheme!
With intimidating stares, hundreds of cultivated warriors surrounded Hong Fang, Hong Mingyue and the rest of the gang all-round.
But Hong Fang was, after all, an intrepid person who had seen the world: at this very moment, he was still able to smile.
"Hong Shisan. Can't believe I had underestimated you. But still the crown prince is my hostage. Which one do you think is faster, your warriors' blades or the crown prince's death?"
Hong Fang had then already understood that Hong Shisan was with the crown prince and the Marquis Wu.
Though he did not know when and how the crown prince had any contact with the Ghost Sect, he knew that he had not completely lost as long as he had the crown prince under his control. All he needed to do was to stall and wait for Hong Qingyun to arrive. Everything would be fine then.
