Chapter 299: Whom to Believe

Chapter 299: Whom to Believe

There were six to seven hundred palace guards divided into five squads. Although they all belonged to the Sword and Halberd Battalion, each had their own duties and rarely interacted with each other. Wang He did not recognize any guard surnamed Meng, but since the other party could accurately recite some of the palace’s secret codes, he had no choice but to believe it.

Han Ruzi was greatly alarmed and was about to open his mouth to inquire when Prince Donghai stepped forward first: “Is it a man or woman?”

“Dressed as a man, but appears to be a woman.” Wang He had observed very carefully.

“It’s her. What was her name again?”

“Meng E. She suddenly appeared out of nowhere – Your Majesty must be careful.”

Ni Qiu ran from among the eunuchs to the Emperor’s side. “Meng E? Wasn’t she the one who took away the imperial seal?”

Originally, Meng E had made contact with Ruzi’s personal soldiers in the southern city and, under Cai Xinghai’s arrangement, had taken the imperial seal. She should have delivered it directly to the Emperor, but she disappeared halfway, delaying many matters. Cai Xinghai regretted it deeply, and all the personal soldiers thought she was a traitor. Ni Qiu felt indignant just hearing her name.

Prince Donghai did not know the full story, but he understood immediately upon hearing this: “I said she was problematic. The death of Grand General Han Xing must be connected to her as well, right?”

Han Ruzi truly had no way to defend Meng E. The assassin who killed Han Xing was said to be a man, but the timing coincided with Meng E’s escape to Hangu Pass. And he had possessed the Founding Emperor’s sword – most likely someone from the palace, perhaps Meng E’s brother Meng Che, or one of the guards they had taken with them.

But he was no longer the Weary Marquis – he was the Emperor of Chu. He was of supreme status, yet occasionally there were times when his words went unheeded. Wang He had originally been somewhat uncertain, but after hearing what Prince Donghai and Ni Qiu said, he too became worried. He stood in place without moving. This was different from the nighttime visit outside Luoyang city – the Ugly Wang’s credibility was much higher than that of a guard who had left and returned.

Just as Han Ruzi was about to give the order again, everyone around him – from guards to eunuchs – suddenly knelt down, and the outer perimeter guards drew closer as if facing a great enemy.

“What is the meaning of this?” Han Ruzi asked in surprise.

Wang He said: “Your Majesty must not take risks. Let me go and find out what’s going on.”

“She won’t tell you,” Han Ruzi said.

“I’ll go,” Cui Teng volunteered, having no idea who Meng E was. “Just a female guard, right? Uh, Your Majesty, she’s just a female guard, isn’t she? If there’s something else… hmm, you’d better give me a hint first.”

Han Ruzi said to Prince Donghai: “You go, then bring her to the office to see me.”

Naturally, the Emperor had to stay in the most heavily guarded place in Pengcheng. The back residence of the government office had been completely cleared out, the Pengcheng magistrate had moved elsewhere, and most of the items in the rooms were gifts from Marquis Han Chou of Luoyang. Liu Jie did everything possible to make the Emperor’s stay more comfortable.

Han Ruzi did not notice these differences, only feeling that the number of guards in the courtyard had greatly increased. Liu Jie personally came out to welcome the Emperor and stayed by his side constantly from then on.

“Meng E was indeed a palace guard before. She first protected the Empress Dowager, then followed Us out of the palace. She can be trusted.” Han Ruzi felt that everyone around him was overreacting.

“Your Majesty is personally leading the expedition, and this place is very close to Donghai – we cannot be too careful,” Liu Jie said. As the one in charge of the guards, he knew the weight of his responsibility and dared not be careless in the slightest. “We must be especially wary of familiar people. Meng E likely knows Your Majesty’s habits. She may have failed in an assassination attempt midway and changed her story to requesting an audience with Your Majesty.”

Han Ruzi smiled and shook his head. “Lord Liu hasn’t met her, has he? She is…”

“I have met her,” Liu Jie said with certainty, his expression serious. “Both Meng E and Meng Che were guards that the Empress Dowager brought from Donghai, not selected from within the palace. Us eunuchs had long found their origins suspicious and secretly investigated them, discovering that the Meng siblings were descendants of the former King of Qi, Chen Lun. Yet the Empress Dowager still trusted them.”

Han Ruzi was shocked again, not expecting that Meng E’s background had long been exposed. “You and…?”

“Myself and the former Director of Palace Attendants Jing Yao. Lord Jing was very skilled at gathering intelligence.” Liu Jie was not really concerned about this minor matter and continued: “The rebel army has already raised the banner of the King of Qi. For Meng E to come see Your Majesty at this time, she must have ulterior motives.”

”Deploy more guards. We still need to see her. Some matters must be asked face to face.”

Liu Jie was about to voice further objections when Han Ruzi waved his hand. “Do your duty. We will decide the rest.”

Liu Jie dared not speak again and conveyed multiple orders to the eunuch beside him.

Ten guards protected the Emperor’s side, while another twenty dispersed outside the building. A large number of soldiers sealed off the entire street outside the government office.

Zhang Youcai, Ni Qiu, and others stood guard on both sides of the Emperor, ready to shield him from any blade at a moment’s notice.

Cui Teng stood closest to the Emperor, both nervous and excited. “Female guards are rare. Is she very skilled? How many can she fight at once? Your Majesty, rest assured, with me here, not even a fly could get close. Your Majesty, may I boldly ask – is the female guard very beautiful?”

Han Ruzi ignored him and lowered his head to read a copy of a memorial sent from the Capital.

Prince Donghai quickly returned. “It is indeed Meng E, but she refuses to tell me anything. Does Your Majesty wish to see her?”

Han Ruzi handed the memorial to Zhang Youcai beside him. “Summon Meng E.”

Announcing the summoning was not Prince Donghai’s responsibility. He stepped aside and, observing the formation in the room, slowly moved closer to the Emperor. Soon he squeezed next to Cui Teng, making eyes at him to give up his position.

Cui Teng refused, glaring back angrily. The two stared each other down for a while before Prince Donghai conceded defeat. He could only sigh inwardly – having fallen from grace, even Cui the Second dared to bully him.

Meng E arrived with two guards in front and four behind. After entering and walking a few steps, the leading guards stopped and moved to either side, flanking Meng E in the middle. She stood more than ten paces from the Emperor. In the dim lamplight, the two could barely make out each other’s faces.

It was indeed Meng E herself. Her appearance had not changed much, especially those extremely cold eyes. Dressed in men’s clothing, she did not kneel but clasped her fists like a man and said, “Guard Meng E pays respects to Your Majesty.”

Cui Teng sighed in disappointment. So the female guard was truly just a guard. Though not ugly, she could hardly be called a beauty – someone like him, an old hand at picking flowers, had no interest.

“Mm.” In front of others, Han Ruzi had to maintain his dignity. “Do you have anything to explain?”

Meng E shook her head. “I did not come to make explanations, but to remind Your Majesty not to waste time in Pengcheng. Depart north immediately – perhaps there is still time.”

“Time for what?”

“Time to stop the Xiongnu army outside the Great Wall.”

Han Ruzi was startled and immediately stood up from his soft chair. “The Xiongnu?”

Just as Meng E was about to continue, Prince Donghai stepped forward, facing the Emperor. “Your Majesty, do not be hasty. Grand General Cui Hong receives news from the northern frontier daily and has never reported any unusual Xiongnu activity. For Meng E to suddenly appear and say such things is hardly credible. Let me question her first.”

Han Ruzi nodded and sat back down.

Prince Donghai turned around and walked forward several steps, smiling. “Meng E, you were unwilling to answer my questions earlier. Now, before His Majesty, can you answer them?”

Meng E also nodded.

“Where have you been these past days?”

“I traveled east from the Capital, first to Hangu Pass, then to Luoyang, then participated in the uprising in Donghai. A few days ago I reached Linzi City, and finally came to Pengcheng to see His Majesty.”

“Participated in the uprising? You joined the rebels?”

“The people on Righteous Hero Island could not wait any longer and wanted to rise up early. My brother and I went to persuade them to abandon their plan.”

“And the result?”

Meng E paused briefly. “They would not listen and pulled my brother in as well.” Meng E’s gaze swept past Prince Donghai to look at the Emperor. “None of this matters. The key issue is the Xiongnu…”

“Do not rush. I will ask about the Xiongnu soon.” Prince Donghai stepped forward two more paces, blocking Meng E’s line of sight. “What are the rebels’ next plans?”

“To wait for the Xiongnu to breach the passes, then divide up Great Chu together.”

The smile vanished from Prince Donghai’s face. He had originally wanted to ask more about the rebels’ movements, but now could only turn to the Xiongnu matter. “The rebels are colluding with the Xiongnu? Righteous Hero Island is such a small place – what could make the Xiongnu ally with you?”

”The intermediary is the Fuyu Kingdom. The Fuyu King and Righteous Hero Island guarantee they can occupy the Qi-Lu region and attract more than a hundred thousand Chu troops, while the Xiongnu take the opportunity to breach the passes. Fuyu will also send troops to attack Liaodong.”

Prince Donghai found this hard to believe and was about to ask more questions when Meng E said loudly, “Your Majesty, think about it – are the rebels holing up in the city waiting to die? Without powerful backing, how would Righteous Hero Island and Fuyu dare to rebel at this time?”

Prince Donghai sneered coldly. “Perhaps Righteous Hero Island and Fuyu are quite certain that Great Chu will fall into chaos again. Meng E, you didn’t return earlier or later, but chose to see His Majesty precisely when the Chu army has surrounded the rebels and is preparing a major assault. This is hardly a coincidence, is it?”

If the Emperor were assassinated, the rebels would still have a chance to break through the encirclement and even turn defeat into victory.

“The details of this matter I will tell only to His Majesty alone,” Meng E said coldly.

Prince Donghai turned toward the Emperor. “Your Majesty, I suggest we first detain Meng E within the army, then send people to the northern frontier to investigate Xiongnu movements. The three Chu armies here should proceed according to the original plan – we must first pacify Qi and Donghai at all costs. Moreover, there have always been rumors that the Xiongnu plan a major southern invasion, which may not necessarily involve collusion with the rebels. The rebels might be using the Xiongnu to frighten us, hoping to draw our army away.”

Both Meng E and Prince Donghai had valid points, and Han Ruzi could not decide. “You may withdraw first. Meng E, remain behind. We…”

Before he could finish speaking, the eunuchs and guards all knelt down again, feeling that this female guard’s identity was special and her appearance at this time was truly too dangerous.

Meng E said calmly, “Your Majesty should imprison me first. Whether my words are true or false cannot be determined through argument – the facts will prove everything.”

“Go rest first.” Han Ruzi could not be so stubborn as to go against the loyal hearts of so many people. He said to Liu Jie, “Send people to attend to her. This is not imprisonment, understand?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Liu Jie rose and withdrew to the doorway, gesturing for Meng E to follow him.

Meng E said to the Emperor, “In these chaotic times, Your Majesty should not exhaust yourself practicing martial arts.”

Han Ruzi was startled. While others thought Meng E was advising the Emperor to take care of his health, he understood that she was telling him to stop practicing internal energy cultivation.

After Liu Jie and Meng E left, Prince Donghai walked up to the Emperor and spoke sideways, precisely pushing Cui Teng aside. “Your Majesty, this matter is too suspicious. Meng E very likely did not come alone. It is necessary to conduct a major search in Pengcheng.”

“Mm, summon Grand General Cui Hong.” Compared to a citywide search, Han Ruzi was more concerned about the Xiongnu in the north. As for stopping his martial practice, he found it strange but did not pay it particular attention.

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