Conspiracy (continued)

"What is that? Explain yourself!"

"For example, three years ago in France, there appeared a ruthless criminal at the Spirit Transformation level. Because he had been betrayed by his lover and cuckolded, he hated all promiscuous women and would always kill them with the cruel method of gutting them. Anyone who dared to stop him would be killed by him as well. He committed dozens of massacres and was known as the Ferocious Forked Evil Spider. Later, he was defeated by my master and a Spirit Transformation expert from your country. He was seriously injured and fled."

Why are you bringing this up? Are you trying to boast about your master's achievements?

"If the Ferocious Forked Evil Spider stood before you, would you dare to condemn him?"

Before Su Yingtao could answer, Si Ming continued, "You wouldn't dare, and neither would the victims' families, because you all know very well that he's a ruthless killer. If you dare to speak ill of him to his face, he will kill you. But, clearly my master is stronger than this Ferocious Forked Evil Spider, so why do you dare to curse him to his face?"

Su Yingtao roared, "Because he feels guilty! Because he feels remorseful!"

"Wrong! Because he's a hero, you know he won't do anything to you. Even if you criticize him, insult him, or humiliate him to his face, he'll only choose to endure it. But the Ferocious Forked Evil Spider is a villain, so you should avoid him, be afraid of him, and not dare to say a harsh word to him—bullying the weak and fearing the strong is the best description of you."

Su Yingtao looked conflicted. "I... I'm not... You're lying! I'm not a bully who picks on the weak and fears the strong!"

Yan Jinghong spoke up to stop Si Ming: "Alright, that's enough."

Si Ming ignored him and continued to pressure Su Yingtao: "Fine, then tell me, in front of which vicious and ruthless villains have you ever insulted them? Have you ever done so even once?"

"..."

Su Yingtao couldn't answer; if he had ever done that, he wouldn't be standing here alive now.

"If you replaced my master with Ferocious Forked Evil Spider, would you still dare to criticize him to his face? Why would you dare to do this to my master? What's the difference?"

"..."

"You accuse your older brother of being hypocritical, but you're wrong. He's just more mature than you and understands this principle, which is why he didn't do it. Unlike you, who are naive and childish, bullying the weak and fearing the strong, and even feeling smug about it, thinking you're doing the right thing—it's absolutely laughable."

"I didn't... I didn't bully the weak and fear the strong! You're just making excuses and changing your mind, I won't listen to you!"

Su Yingtao covered his ears, turned around, and ran out.

If his master hadn't been there, Si Ming would definitely have pressed his advantage; now he can only know when to stop.

"Sigh, you've gone too far," Yan Jinghong said helplessly.

Although his disciples stood up for him, which moved him somewhat, their methods were always unconventional and unorthodox, leaving people unsure how to evaluate them.

"That's an exaggeration. He's not young anymore, he looks four or five years older than me," Si Ming said, remembering he was a time traveler. "Murong Qing is much more mature than him. He's still so unreasonable. He's obviously a spoiled brat who's been pampered since childhood."

The old general sighed, "There's a reason for that. Su Yingtao's mother passed away not long after he was born, and Yinglan was fifteen years older than him. She played the role of a mother and sister to him throughout his life. The two had a deep bond, so it's not hard to imagine how much Yinglan's death affected him."

"Because you feel sorry for him and can't bear to discipline him severely, so it becomes spoiling him?" Si Ming shook his head. "If you don't educate him properly, someone else will educate him sooner or later, and then it won't be as simple as just scolding him."

Ultimately, it's someone else's family matter, so it's not appropriate to say too much. Besides, Su Yingtao has an older brother who is at the Spirit Transformation Realm, who might be able to protect him for life. Perhaps Su Yingbo took this into consideration, which is why he didn't have the heart to discipline his younger brother.

To be honest, Su Yingtao wasn't actually the arrogant and domineering "second-generation military officer" type. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to become the Tiger Guard Commander. He was quite clear-headed. For example, when faced with the attempts of the two princes to win him over, he chose to remain neutral because he was worried about implicating his elder brother. No matter whose order it was, he would do it as long as it was within his duty, without favoring either side.

Undeniably, Su Yingtao does have some of the bad habits of a spoiled brat, but he is by no means a criminal. He knows how to control himself in critical moments, but only if it has nothing to do with Yan Jinghong. Once Yan Jinghong is involved, he becomes extremely stubborn and anxious, like a powder keg ready to explode at any moment.

"I'm not a bully who preys on the weak... I'm not..."

Su Yingtao had a gloomy face, looked down at the ground, and walked quickly down the road as if possessed.

Don't you want revenge against Yan Jinghong?

A sudden voice startled Su Yingtao. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw a young man, slightly younger than himself, standing under a maple tree by the roadside, looking at him with cold eyes.

Who are you? Why are you following me?

Although the other party's offer was tempting, Su Yingtao was not so easily fooled, especially since the other party clearly was not a kind person. So he reached out and gripped the sword hilt, circulated his internal True Qi, and prepared to strike at any moment.

"Don't be wary of me. I mean you no harm. Meeting you here is just a coincidence. Yan Jinghong is my enemy, and I plan to take revenge on him soon. After learning about your situation, I came to invite you. If you are willing, we can cooperate. If not, I will act alone."

What grudge does Yan Jinghong hold against you?

Although Su Yingtao disliked Yan Jinghong very much, he also knew that Yan Jinghong traveled the world to uphold justice and punish evil, and that most of his enemies were those who were extremely wicked. No matter how despicable Su Yingtao was, he would never associate with such people.

"Like you, my family was also sacrificed by him because he wanted to save more people, so my parents and sister were 'abandoned' by him... Now I'm here not to seek revenge on him, but to show him the resentment of the 'sacrificed'."

Su Yingtao was moved by what he heard and felt a sense of shared suffering. He did not doubt the other person's words because the other person did indeed feel very similar to him. When he first heard the bad news about Sister Lan, he had the same feeling, but it gradually faded over time. However, the person in front of him had maintained this feeling. He really did not understand how the other person controlled himself from going crazy.

"Okay, I promise."

The Second Prince's residence.

The advisor, Yang Wentang, bowed his head and pleaded guilty, "Your Highness, it was our dereliction of duty. We did not expect that the other side would use such despicable means to turn the tables on us. They were the ones who sent people to break us out of prison, yet they framed us for murder to cover it up. What's even more hateful are those ignorant people who followed along and made a fuss. They didn't even use their brains to think that if we wanted to kill someone, why would we use such an undisguised method?"

"You yourself said they're just a bunch of fools. They don't have the brains to think critically. Of course, they'll believe whatever the media says. Third Brother went to great lengths to control the media, wasn't it all for this moment to manipulate public opinion?"

The Second Prince Han Kun, casually stroked a black cat, seemingly unconcerned about the accusations of framing him, and continued, "My third brother went to the Su State, and he's become even more naive. What can a bunch of ignorant people do? Besides marching, demonstrating, and shouting slogans, they can't do anything. Foreign experiences just don't work in our own country."

"Your Highness is absolutely right," Yang Wentang quickly echoed, looking up as he said, "But we can't let those media outlets continue to tarnish Your Highness's reputation. I will send someone to warn them, and if they don't stop in time, I will make them understand who is in charge in this country."

"Let's do it this way. Although we lost Qi Tailai, it wasn't a complete loss. At least we figured out Third Brother's trump card. He really has nothing to offer; his only reliance is those foreign aids from the Su State."

Yang Wentang hesitated and said, "My fear is that Su Yingbo will side with the Third Prince because of this."

"No, he will remain neutral as long as my father speaks up, which is why I dare to threaten him."

"Your Highness is wise."

"What's so brilliant about him? I'm still at a disadvantage in this game. In terms of intelligence, my third brother has always been superior to me. Since we were children, I've never beaten him in chess. Unfortunately, he was born six years later than me. Six years is enough time for me to accumulate enough strength. Now he can't cause any big trouble. Let him enjoy these minor victories."

Yang Wentang pondered for a moment, "So, during that debate in the classroom last time, His Highness had already seen through the Third Prince's intentions and deliberately granted them his wish."