Relying on Yourself Is Better Than Relying on Others

After stripping the spoils from the two corpses, Zhao Hongming moved through the shadows, avoided everyone, and returned smoothly to Clear Breeze Pavilion.

He returned to his bedroom and set down the bloodstained long saber.

This saber had been forged from Hundred-Refined Steel according to the standard Imperial Guard Saber of Great Wei. He had specially commissioned it earlier to practice the Heaven and Earth Severing Slash.

Strictly speaking, this was its first taste of blood.

Zhao Hongming lay on his bed and carefully recalled what he had seen earlier.

In his impression, the post of General of the Right Imperial Guards could only be held by a Martial Warrior who had reached the Aperture Opening Realm.

In other words, Dai Gongzheng, whose head had been chopped off in that room, had possessed at least first-grade Aperture Opening Realm cultivation.

Yet even a Martial Warrior at that level had still been unable to guard against certain poisons.

He had thought that once a Martial Warrior's cultivation reached the Aperture Opening Realm or even higher, they could fear no such despicable tricks.

Now, it seemed he had been somewhat overconfident.

As for the Assassin whom he had killed with a single slash, in Zhao Hongming's eyes, the man's methods, temperament, and cultivation had all surpassed his own.

That Assassin had killed without batting an eye, and everything he did had been watertight, link after link.

If Zhao Hongming had not stumbled upon him by chance, he truly would have had a bitter dose to swallow later.

Moreover, after tonight's events, Zhao Hongming had gained some insights of his own into Martial Arts.

In his view, when facing an enemy, the most important factor in victory or defeat was one's mind.

Some people cultivated excellent techniques, yet failed to think in battle. Their strikes were slow, their openings plentiful, and their opponents would exploit those gaps and find their fatal weaknesses.

Even with a body full of martial skill, they could only unleash one or two parts out of ten, and in the end, they would die an untimely death.

Conversely, some people cultivated ordinary techniques, but had nimble minds. They learned to use poison, feints, and borrowed strength.

A technique worth six parts could display nine parts of its power in their hands, allowing the weak to overcome the strong in the end.

That was the result of fighting with one's brain.

Tonight's battle had achieved the effect of using four ounces to move a thousand pounds because he had thought things through thoroughly before acting and had seized the right time, place, and people in advance.

In the end, he had struck where they had not expected and attacked where they were unprepared.

So before acting, one had to observe more and think more.

Fight if you could win; run if you could not.

Do not think running away was shameful.

Running away might be shameful, but it worked.

Only then could one turn danger into safety amid countless setbacks in the future.

Zhao Hongming replayed every detail of tonight's battle, and only after ensuring that nothing had been overlooked did he finally stop thinking about it.

"Wang Bao, prepare a basin of hot water. This Prince is going to soak in a hot bath."

"Yes!"

As his personal Eunuch, Wang Bao would only leave after Zhao Hongming had gone to sleep.

At this moment, he stood guard outside Zhao Hongming's door, ready to attend to his every command.

Having just killed someone, Zhao Hongming still carried the stench of blood.

Although he was a prince, even if someone suspected him of murder, they could do nothing to him without conclusive evidence.

What was more, he had killed an Assassin and rendered merit to Great Wei.

Still, following the principle that less trouble was better than more, Zhao Hongming did not want to invite trouble for himself.

After all, he still carried quite a few secrets that would be difficult to explain.

It was already late autumn, early winter, and the weather in Great Wei had turned cool.

Zhao Hongming soaked in the hot bath, his mood pleasant.

He had made a rough count earlier and found that he had gained quite a lot from the two corpses.

There had been nearly five hundred taels of silver alone.

Most of it had come from that Assassin.

Zhao Hongming guessed that the man needed money while carrying out business away from home, so he had brought many banknotes with him.

Aside from the silver, there were also more than twenty Wish Stones.

Wish Stones had no limitations of time or place when used.

Martial Warriors carried them wherever they went, making it convenient to cultivate whenever they wished.

They would not lock them away at home to gather dust in a cabinet, so this time, Zhao Hongming had benefited from them.

They said murder and arson brought golden belts, while building bridges and repairing roads left one without even a corpse to bury.

Today, Zhao Hongming had seen it for himself.

With these resources in hand, he would need to cultivate diligently for some time in the days ahead.

Assassins had now appeared even within the palace. It was becoming increasingly unsafe.

He still had to cultivate seriously and not allow himself the slightest slackness.

First, he would strive to break through into the Innate Realm and become an Innate Martial Artist.

Memorial Palace.

Wan Youqing, who had been furious earlier, sat behind a long table, flipping through two booklets with blue covers.

One contained the roster for tonight's palace guard shifts, while the other recorded the guards who had actually reported for duty.

Such a major lapse had occurred in the Palace Guard Division tonight, and he feared someone might have tampered with these lists.

Dai Gongzheng, the General of the Right Imperial Guards whose head had already been removed from his shoulders, had been responsible for this very matter.

Thus, once things over there had concluded, Wan Youqing immediately brought his Subordinates here to inspect the records personally.

After a while, his page-turning paused.

There was an entry that did not match between the two rosters.

Five night guards had been assigned to the East Fifth Residence where Fifth Prince Zhao Hongming lived, but only two had actually been arranged to report for duty.

Someone had clearly altered the records.

He summoned his Subordinates and ordered them to investigate carefully.

Because such a major lapse had occurred tonight, none of his Subordinates dared to loaf around.

Before long, the results of the investigation were placed before him.

According to the statements of the guards listed on the roster, Night Watch General Miao Muwang had transferred away the other three night guards stationed at the East Fifth Residence.

There was something wrong with this Miao Muwang.

Wan Youqing immediately shouted, "Have Night Watch General Miao Muwang come see me at once."

"Chief Inspector, word has just come from the brothers. General Miao Muwang's body was discovered in a Peace Basin within the palace."

Wan Youqing's already grim expression darkened further.

One incident after another had happened today, keeping his mind on high alert. Even his temples began to throb in waves.

Wan Youqing rubbed his swollen temples and sorted through all the information he had gathered once more.

He roughly guessed that the Han Country Assassin bearing the codename Seven had intended to assassinate Fifth Prince.

The thought that another Assassin might still be hiding in the palace made him hesitate no longer. He said decisively, "Immediately arrange for five agile brothers to go to Fifth Prince's East Fifth Residence and protect Fifth Prince."

The people below clasped their fists. "Yes!"

"I only hope it is not too late to mend the fold after the sheep are lost. Otherwise, I'll be left holding the bag. Damn it, these truly are Troubled times," Wan Youqing muttered to himself.

Holding the two rosters, he hurried toward the Jian'an Emperor's sleeping quarters—Qianqing Palace.

Tonight's affair could be either major or minor. He had to report it to the Jian'an Emperor without delay and let the Jian'an Emperor decide.

On the other side, Zhao Hongming had just finished bathing and emerged from the bathhouse in a brocade robe.

Hearing the bustling commotion outside, he could not help asking curiously, "What happened outside? Why is it so noisy?"

"Please wait a moment, Your Highness. This servant will go take a look." His personal Eunuch Wang Bao hurried away.

A moment later, Eunuch Wang Bao returned, saying happily, "Your Highness, the Palace Guard Division has sent another five night guards to protect Your Highness."

Zhao Hongming, the one who had set it all in motion, stirred inwardly. He could roughly guess that the Palace Guard Division had uncovered some suspicious dealings and promptly taken remedial action.

Eunuch Wang Bao, unaware of the truth, thought the Jian'an Emperor had changed his mind and given Zhao Hongming extra care. A trace of delight appeared on his face.

Zhao Hongming did not expose Wang Bao's pleasant fantasy.

In his view, lean on a mountain and it may collapse; lean on water and it may run dry. Relying on yourself was better than relying on others.

Rather than waiting for the Jian'an Emperor's favor, it was better to devote more effort to improving his strength.