The main embassy compound was a sprawling six-courtyard residence, with a separate garden attached to the west side. It covered an enormous area; the route from Sun Shaozong's room to the Front Hall alone wound on for more than three li.
Sun Shaozong could not tell what style the exotic flowers, strange grasses, pavilions, towers, bracketed eaves, waterfalls, jade-green pools, and artificial hills belonged to, but one thing was certain: it was extravagant. According to the memories in his mind, the embassy had been built with a massive sum specifically allocated by the King of Qian Xiang Country, and every detail had been modeled after the royal palace.
Tsk~
Qian Xiang Country did not seem particularly wealthy—certainly nowhere near as wealthy as Great Zhou—yet it had used the people's hard-earned wealth to build such a lavish embassy. No wonder people said Qian Xiang Country was a loyal dog raised by Great Zhou.
Because getting dressed had taken him quite some effort, by the time Sun Shaozong arrived at the Front Hall carrying the Gold Thread Great Ring Blade, the courtyard was already packed with a dark mass of people—at least a hundred of them.
Most of those in the front wore grave expressions as though mourning their parents. They were likely the official members of the Great Zhou delegation, the unlucky souls who would soon be implicated and punished. Those at the back were also silent as cicadas, but no terror showed on their faces. They were the menial workers hired by the embassy.
Sun Shaozong first swept his gaze across the crowd expressionlessly, then called Feng Xin over and asked, "Is everyone here?"
"More or less."
Feng Xin smacked his lips, then added, "Only one kitchen assistant is missing. A servant named... Ruan Wenhao, I think."
A kitchen assistant?
Just as expected!
Sun Shaozong understood at once. He immediately raised his voice and asked, "Does anyone here know where Ruan Wenhao has gone?"
Before his words had even faded, a plump, prosperous-looking man stepped out from the front row and cupped his hands. "Reporting to you, Commander, Ruan Wenhao asked this humble one for leave this morning. He said he had some family matters to handle at home. He should still be there now."
He left this morning?
Sun Shaozong looked up at the sky. It was clearly already past noon, and disappointment filled him at once. After so much time, it was probably too late to catch him.
"Commander."
Feng Xin leaned closer and asked in confusion, "Lord Niu was attacked at the Ruan Residence. What use is there in looking for this Ruan Wenhao?"
Sun Shaozong shot him a sidelong glance and held up his bloodstained right hand with a sneer. "Lord Niu was indeed killed at the Ruan Residence, but I was poisoned in the embassy!"
This blackish-purple blood was what had flowed from Sun Shaozong's nose and mouth.
At first, with his mind still in a muddle, he had not examined it closely. But after Feng Xin mentioned that he might have interfered with the assassination, he immediately connected the tainted blood to his transmigration.
Clearly, the real Sun Shaozong had been poisoned to death by Ruan Wenhao. Only then had Sun Yi, the transmigrator, been able to Borrow a Corpse to Return the Soul and become this body's new master.
Therefore, he was certain that an accomplice of the assassin had to be hiding inside the embassy!
And a kitchen assistant was undoubtedly an ideal identity for poisoning someone. If Niu Yongxin had not always eaten separately, there might have been no need to risk an assassination at all. Ruan Wenhao alone could have dealt with him.
Feng Xin was not completely stupid. He stared blankly at the tainted blood for a moment, then his face flushed the color of pig liver as he cursed, "Damn it! So that bastard Wenhao was a spy sent by the assassin! If I get my hands on him, I'll tear him apart alive!"
"What are you waiting for, then?"
Sun Shaozong made a cutting motion toward the gate with his blade and issued his order decisively. "Pick twenty sharp and capable brothers, have them change into civilian clothes, and come with me to arrest Ruan Wenhao!"
"Understood!"
Seeing his superior brimming with heroic spirit, Feng Xin was infected by his fervor and grew excited as well. He answered crisply and prepared to gather the men.
But just as he opened his mouth, he suddenly remembered the heavily armed troops outside. The little bit of boldness in his chest vanished without a trace, and he stammered, "Commander, there are hundreds of soldiers outside..."
"With our current situation, what is there left to fear?"
Before he could finish, Sun Shaozong cut him off. He pointed his blade tip toward the gate, then at the ground beneath their feet. "If we can capture the assassin's accomplice before the Qianxiang People do, everyone may yet have a way to live. But if we stay here, we can only sit and wait for death!"
As he spoke, he suddenly raised his voice again. "Brothers, do you want to follow me and carve out a way to live, or stay here and obediently wait for death?!"
"We'll follow you, Commander, and carve out a way to live!"
"That's right! Let's fight our way out together!"
"Whoever dares stop me, I'll chop him to pieces!"
If there was any chance to live, who would willingly sit around and wait to die?!
Thus, Sun Shaozong's words drew an immediate response. Nearly all the guards had their fighting spirit roused. They shouted over one another, and some even drew their sabers with loud clangs, hacking wildly through the air as if ready to fight to the death.
Feng Xin was no exception. Suppressing the excitement in his heart, he stepped forward and selected twenty men. Yet the guards who had not been chosen refused to remain behind, all clamoring to join the investigation.
Unable to suppress them, Feng Xin could only look pleadingly at Sun Shaozong again.
This guy really was useless!
If only those squadron leaders under his command had transmigrated here with him.
With such random thoughts running through his mind, Sun Shaozong stepped forward several paces and called out, "Brothers, searching for the assassin is important, but the embassy cannot be left unattended either. I ask you all to help me guard this home!"
Though several guards remained unwilling, in light of Sun Shaozong's forceful performance and strength far beyond that of ordinary men, they reluctantly agreed.
The men returned to their rooms to change into civilian clothes. Feng Xin led several others to the stables, and before long, twenty-two fine horses had been brought into the Front Yard. Among them was a large Black Steed Horse with powerful hooves, Sun Shaozong's usual mount.
Sun Shaozong had originally worried that riding a horse for the first time might feel awkward. Yet when he swung himself into the saddle, he was incomparably skilled, as though he had trained in horsemanship for over a decade.
His heart settled. He squeezed his legs against the horse's flanks, and the Black Steed Horse raised its hooves and charged straight for the side gate. The twenty-one riders behind him followed like shadows!
Once they charged out of the side gate, they saw soldiers packed three layers deep at the street entrance a hundred paces away. Having apparently heard the hoofbeats, every one of them looked as though facing a great enemy, their spears and sabers raised together.
Among them stood a middle-aged general in gleaming armor and a bright helmet. He shouted, "This general has been ordered by the king to protect the safety of the embassy and its surroundings. Please return at once and do not bring ruin upon yourselves!"
At the founding of Great Zhou, its armies had once conquered all of Qian Xiang Country and stationed troops there for more than a decade. During that time, Qian Xiang Country's language, measurements, and even customs had all been forcibly Sinicized.
Although Great Zhou later withdrew its garrison, those marks of Sinicization had not weakened in the slightest. Even now, nearly everyone in Qinglin Prefecture could speak fluent Shuntian Prefecture official speech, while their own native tongue was almost extinct.
Thus, every guard heard the middle-aged general's shout loud and clear. Combined with the dense forest of spears and formation of blades ahead, which flesh and blood could not possibly withstand, the guards could not help feeling uneasy. Their horses slowed by nearly half.
At that moment, Sun Shaozong swung the Gold Thread Great Ring Blade into the wind and shouted back sternly, "We are envoys of Great Zhou, charged by Imperial Order with protecting the embassy and its surroundings! We are now pursuing the assassin's accomplices. Whoever dares obstruct us is slighting Great Zhou and slighting His Majesty, the Son of Heaven! Do not blame this general's blade for showing no mercy!"
After having several enormous accusations piled onto him in succession, the middle-aged general's face changed dramatically. Though he had acted under the king's orders, how could the king of a tiny Qian Xiang Country compare to the emperor of the Celestial Empire?
If a conflict truly broke out and something happened to these Great Zhou envoys, he feared that before the Great Zhou Emperor could even send troops to demand an explanation, the king would be the first to spare him no mercy!
The more he thought about it, the more guilty he felt. Seeing Sun Shaozong galloping toward him with blade in hand, showing no intention of stopping, the middle-aged general finally gritted his teeth and waved his hand. "Move aside! Let them pass!"
After saying that, he seemed to feel that this was too humiliating, so he hurriedly added stiffly, "The city gates are closed anyway. Even if they want to run, they cannot escape!"
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